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Engineering topics

Hirata, Yasuyuki

Publications and source records attributed to Hirata, Yasuyuki.

Detecting driving potentials at the buried SiO 2 nanolayers in solar cells by chemical-selective nonlinear x-ray spectroscopy

We present an approach to selectively examine an asymmetric potential in the buried layer of solar cell devices by means of nonlinear x-ray spectroscopy. Detecting second harmonic generation signals while resonant to the SiO 2 core level, we directly observe existence of the band bending effect in the SiO 2 nanolayer, buried in the heterostructures of Al/LiF/SiO 2 /Si, TiO 2 /SiO 2 /Si, and Al 2 O 3 /SiO 2 /Si. Furthermore, the results demonstrate high sensitivity of the method to the asymmetric potential that determines performance of functional materials for photovoltaics or other optoelectronic devices.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Probing lithium mobility at a solid electrolyte surface

Abstract Solid-state electrolytes overcome many challenges of present-day lithium ion batteries, such as safety hazards and dendrite formation 1,2 . However, detailed understanding of the involved lithium dynamics is missing due to a lack of in operando measurements with chemical and interfacial specificity. Here we investigate a prototypical solid-state electrolyte using linear and nonlinear extreme-ultraviolet spectroscopies. Leveraging the surface sensitivity of extreme-ultraviolet-second-harmonic-generation spectroscopy, we obtained a direct spectral signature of surface lithium ions, showing a distinct blueshift relative to bulk absorption spectra. First-principles simulations attributed the shift to transitions from the lithium 1 s state to hybridized Li- s /Ti- d orbitals at the surface. Our calculations further suggest a reduction in lithium interfacial mobility due to suppressed low-frequency rattling modes, which is the fundamental origin of the large interfacial resistance in this material. Our findings pave the way for new optimization strategies to develop these electrochemical devices via interfacial engineering of lithium ions.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗