Electronic core levels of layered Li2xMn1−xPS3 film

Lithium intercalate thin films have been obtained from MnPS3 starting material and characterized by the x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy technique. The regions of Mn 2p and 3p, P and S 2p, and Li 1s core levels have been investigated. The analysis of the spectra has revealed the lack of nonequivalent atoms of Mn, P and S, and Li. The presence of shake-up-type satellites at the Mn 2p and 3p core levels suggests that Li2xMn1−xPS3 is a large-gap insulating Mn compound analogously to the parent MnPS3. After lithium intercalation no remarkable shift has been observed in the binding energy positions of the investigated core levels in comparison with the corresponding MnPS3 pure compound. On these bases, we assume that only an ion transfer accompanies the lithium intercalation process.