A New Air-Free Solution for Li Ion Battery SEM/FIB Characterization by Air-Free Shuttle

Li ion battery has been the most promising solution for power sources for electronics, electric vehicles, and medical devices. Understanding the microstructure of Li ion batteries is critical for designing better performance Li ion batteries. However, Li quickly oxidizes in the air, which makes it impossible to image the original sample surface embedded by an unexpected grown oxide layer during sample transfer. To keep the sample from being exposed to air while transferring from the glovebox to the SEM, the air-free shuttle has been developed. The Air-Free Shuttle is filled with Ar-gas, which prevents materials from being oxidized in the air. When put in the Air-Free Shuttle, the pristine metal surface of Li is protected and keeps its original status during transferring and analysis. Without the protection of an air-free shuttle, the surface structure of the lithium sample shows increased roughness after one minute of exposure to air. At a higher magnification, the differences are distinct. The pattered design guarantees non-obstruction platform working mode for sample handling and analysis, which is no problem for SEM imaging, EDS/EBSD analysis and FIB sample preparation (52° sample tilt). The compact design (50 mm x 100 mm x 40 mm, <400g) makes it fit with most commercial SEM/FIBs. The air-free shuttle is a robust maintenance free, cost-effective solution for Li ion battery microstructure study.