%0 Journal Article
%A Chen, Chunguang
%A Zhou, Tao
%A Danilov, Dmitri L.
%A Gao, Lu
%A Benning, Svenja
%A Schön, Nino
%A Tardif, Samuel
%A Simons, Hugh
%A Hausen, Florian
%A Schülli, Tobias U.
%A Eichel, R.-A.
%A Notten, Peter H. L.
%T Impact of dual-layer solid-electrolyte interphase inhomogeneities on early-stage defect formation in Si electrodes
%J Nature Communications
%V 11
%N 1
%@ 2041-1723
%C [London]
%I Nature Publishing Group UK
%M FZJ-2020-02370
%P 3283
%D 2020
%X While intensive efforts have been devoted to studying the nature of the solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI), little attention has been paid to understanding its role in the mechanical failures of electrodes. Here we unveil the impact of SEI inhomogeneities on early-stage defect formation in Si electrodes. Buried under the SEI, these early-stage defects are inaccessible by most surface-probing techniques. With operando full field diffraction X-ray microscopy, we observe the formation of these defects in real time and connect their origin to a heterogeneous degree of lithiation. This heterogeneous lithiation is further correlated to inhomogeneities in topography and lithium-ion mobility in both the inner- and outer-SEI, thanks to a combination of operando atomic force microscopy, electrochemical strain microscopy and sputter-etched X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Our multi-modal study bridges observations across the multi-level interfaces (Si/LixSi/inner-SEI/outer-SEI), thus offering novel insights into the impact of SEI homogeneities on the structural stability of Si-based lithium-ion batteries.
%F PUB:(DE-HGF)16
%9 Journal Article
%$ pmid:32612261
%U <Go to ISI:>//WOS:000547005400002
%R 10.1038/s41467-020-17104-9
%U https://juser.fz-juelich.de/record/877658