INFLUENCE OF THE GROWTH-CONDITIONS ON ELECTROCHEMICAL FEATURES OF MOO3 FILM-CATHODES IN LITHIUM MICROBATTERIES

MoO3 is a host material which undergoes reversible lithium intercalation at ambient temperature; this property makes this material attractive candidate for the cathode in a secondary lithium battery. Thin-films of this layered compound have been prepared using flash and thermal evaporation techniques. We have measured the structural properties of the flash-evaporated MoO3 films. The influence of the different growth conditions have been investigated on the crystallinity of these films. Microbatteries fabricated with cathode films formed at moderate temperature in the range 30-250 degrees C exhibit a monotonous discharge voltage, indicating that the material remains in a single phase even for high lithium intercalation. Influence of the growth conditions on electrochemical features of MoO3 film-cathodes in lithium microbatteries is investigated. For cathode films prepared at 250 degrees C, lithium diffusion coefficients are in the range 10(-12)-10(-11) cm(2) s(-1) in LixMoO3.