Background Open-air plasma technology provides a versatile, tunable heat source for processing various materials, including those used in lithium-ion batteries. It enables rapid, controlled transformation, offering an advantage over traditional RF or microwave plasmas. One critical application for open-air plasma technology is in solid-state batteries,...

Background Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) exhibit high energy and power densities, and thus are used in widespread applications including powering devices such as laptops and cell phones, to more recent applications such as electric cars. However, LIBs suffer from several issues when used at relatively high or low temperatures, mostly due to the nature...

Lithium lanthanum zirconate (Li7La3Zr2O12, LLZO) is a promising fast ion conductor for Li-ions, with the potential to greatly enhance the energy density and safety of future Li-ion batteries. Many advantages can be obtained by reducing the size of this material to nanometric dimensions. These include but are not limited to: (1) the ability to stabilize...

Lithium lanthanum zirconate (Li7La3Zr2O12, LLZO) is a highly promising solid electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries in that it possesses high conductivity (σ ~10‐4 S/cm) and chemical stability against elemental Li, potentially allowing pure Li anodes and greatly increasing energy capacity of the batteries. LLZO may have a cubic or tetragonal crystal...

The demand for electric automobiles is driving research to find new rechargeable battery options. Current lithium ion batteries are very heavy and require large amounts of space. Additionally, these batteries have the potential to overheat during charging and cause fires. Lithium ion batteries are used because they can be recharged, but the charging...

Li-ion batteries allow us to store electrochemical energy efficiently and safely. Indeed, these batteries have revolutionized fields ranging from portable and wearable electronics to grid-scale energy supply. Typically, Li-ion batteries operate by polarizing and transferring lithium ions through organic solvents or gels. Unfortunately, these systems...

3D battery electrodes with solid-state electrolytes (SSE) are an attractive architecture for next-generation Li-ion energy storage due to their superior safety characteristics and potential for high power/energy densities. These electrodes are structured as arrays of plates or pillars with high aspect ratios (~100) onto which SSE must be conformally...

The lithium battery industry is undergoing rapid expansion, now representing the largest segment of the portable battery industry and dominating the computer, cell phone, and camera power source industry. Beyond consumer electronics, LIBs are also growing in popularity for military, electric vehicle, and aerospace applications. Lithium-ion batteries...

Intercalation compounds have been popular in commercial energy storage devices such as Li-ion batteries, but may achieve even higher performance through improved materials. Recently, 2D materials, such as graphene, have attracted significant attention due to their unique structural and electronic characteristics. Given that conventional intercalation...

The demand for rechargeable batteries is rapidly rising due to increased sales of consumer electronics, electric and hybrid automobiles, and the need for grid-based energy storage systems. Currently, the most widely used rechargeable batteries are manufactured with lithium-ion and liquid electrolyte materials. Unfortunately, as these batteries are charged...