YSZ thin film nanostructured battery for on-chip energy storage applications

Abstract Thin film solid-state batteries stand out as desired components to produce on-chip energy storage, sometimes known as ‘power on a chip’. Multilayer structures have been tried for this purpose. The characteristics of both electrodes and the solid electrolyte require careful choice to meet this need. In this paper, we propose a thin-film battery using zirconia stabilized with yttria as the electrode separator and transition metal/oxides — here ruthenium oxide and gold — as electrodes. We show promising results, given that the objectives of merit (stored energy and energy density) compete with other cutting-edge thin film energy storage devices. While optimistic about the possibility of producing a usable battery, several technical problems remain to be solved. One of them is the operating temperature: in our prototype the peak performance is at 175°C. We conclude that YSZ is able to fulfill the electrolytic task, since its ionic conduction, with a thickness of 50 nm, allows the oxidation-reduction reactions to be carried out in the ruthenium oxide layer; in this thickness their parasitic currents can be kept low.