title: Determination of lithium-ion distributions in nanostructured block polymer electrolyte thin films by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy depth profiling.
abstract: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling with C60(+) sputtering was used to resolve the lithium-ion distribution in the nanometer-scale domain structures of block polymer electrolyte thin films. The electrolytes of interest are mixtures of lithium trifluoromethanesulfonate and lamellar-forming polystyrene-poly(oligo(oxyethylene)methacrylate) (PS-POEM) copolymer. XPS depth profiling results showed that the lithium-ion concentration was directly correlated with the POEM concentration. Furthermore, chemical state and atomic composition of the film were analyzed through the deconvolution of the C1s signal, indicating that the lithium ions appear to be uniformly distributed in the POEM domains. Overall, the unique capabilities of C60(+) depth profiling XPS provide a powerful tool for the analysis of nanostructured polymer thin films in applications ranging from energy storage and generation to surface coatings and nanoscale templates.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States.
authors.forename: Jonathan B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Gilbert
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Cameron K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Shelton
authors.forename: Michael F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Rubner
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Thomas H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Epps
keywords: C60+; XPS depth profiling; block polymer; electrolyte; ion distribution; salt-doping; thin film