Experimental Considerations for Operando Metal-Ion Battery Monitoring using X-ray Techniques

Abstract

Operando experiments represent a powerful tool for the monitoring of internal processes upon battery cycling that provide valuable insights regarding the fundamental electrochemical redox mechanisms and ageing phenomena in battery materials. However, obtaining high-quality, representative and exploitable data from operando measurements requires careful control of many experimental parameters such as the cell configuration, the nature of the cell components, the electrode preparation approach, the optical/goniometer geometry, data acquisition protocols and data interpretation methodology. In this work we discuss the impact of all these factors in X-ray scattering and spectroscopic techniques based on experimental results obtained from different electrode materials using a multifunctional electrochemical in situ cell developed at our laboratory.