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Microstructural and electrical properties of Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 thin-film electrolyte in solid-oxide fuel cells

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2011

Sungmee Cho ,
Jongsik Yoon ,
Jung-Hyun Kim ,
Xinghang Zhang ,
Arumugam Manthiram  and
Haiyan Wang
Sungmee Cho
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3128
Jongsik Yoon
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3128
Jung-Hyun Kim
Affiliation:
Electrochemical Energy Laboratory and Materials Science and Engineering Program, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
Xinghang Zhang
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3123
Arumugam Manthiram
Affiliation:
Electrochemical Energy Laboratory and Materials Science and Engineering Program, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
Haiyan Wang*
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3128
*
a)Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: wangh@ece.tamu.edu
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Abstract

Microstructural and electrical properties of Gd-doped CeO2 (GDC; Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95) thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition as an electrolyte in solid-oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) were investigated. The GDC thin films were prepared on various substrates including single-crystal yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and magnesium oxide (MgO) substrates. The GDC thin-film electrolytes with different grain sizes and grain morphologies were prepared by varying the deposition parameters, such as substrate temperature, oxygen partial pressure, target repetition rate, and laser ablation energy. The microstructural properties of these films were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Alternating-current (AC) and direct-current (DC) electrical measurements through in-plane method show that the electrical property of the GDC thin film strongly depends on grain size, e.g., the total conductivity of the films deposited at 700 °C (7.3 × 10−3 S/cm) is about 20 times higher than the ones deposited at room temperature (3.6 × 10−4 S/cm) at the measurement temperature of 600 °C.

Keywords

Thin FilmElectrical PropertiesPhysical Vapor Deposition (PVD)
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 26 , Issue 7 , 14 April 2011 , pp. 854 - 859
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2011

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