System, Method and Apparatus for Forming a Thin Film Lithium Ion Battery

• US 20140212735A1
• Filed: 01/25/2013
• Published: 07/31/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: APPLEJACK 199 L,P.
• Original Assignee: APPLEJACK 199 L,P.
• Inventors: Koo, Ann, Li, Wenming, Yoon, Byunghoon
• Granted Patent: US 9,478,797 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 429/162
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/54 Controlling or regulating the coating process
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/548 Controlling the composition
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/56 Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating; Arrangements for maintaining the vacuum, e.g. vacuum locks
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/562 for coating elongated substrates
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/564 Means for minimising impurities in the coating chamber such as dust, moisture, residual gases
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/568 Transferring the substrates through a series of coating stations C23C14/562 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45519 Inert gas curtains
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/52 Controlling or regulating the coating process C23C16/45557, C23C16/279 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/54 Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/545 for coating elongated substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0436 Small-sized flat cells or batteries for portable equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/052 Li-accumulators
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0525 Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0562 Solid materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/058 Construction or manufacture
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0585 of accumulators having only flat construction elements, i.e. flat positive electrodes, flat negative electrodes and flat separators
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2004/027 Negative electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2220/30 Batteries in portable systems, e.g. mobile phone, laptop
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/0423 Physical vapour deposition
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/0426 Sputtering
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/0428 : Chemical vapour deposition
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/134 : Electrodes based on metals, Si or alloys
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/1395 : of electrodes based on metals, Si or alloys
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 4/386 : Silicon or alloys based on silicon
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 : Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 70/50 : Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 : Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49115 : including coating or impregnating

Abstract

A system and method of forming a thin film battery includes a substrate, a first current collector formed on the substrate, a cathode layer formed on a portion of the first current collector, a solid layer of electrolyte material formed on the cathode layer, a silicon-metal thin film anode layer formed on the solid layer of electrolyte material and a second current collector electrically coupled to the silicon-metal thin film anode layer. A method and a system for forming the thin film battery are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A battery comprising:

a substrate;

a first current collector formed on the substrate;

a cathode layer formed on a portion of the first current collector;

a layer of solid electrolyte material formed on the cathode layer;

a silicon-metal thin film anode layer formed on the layer of electrolyte material; and

a second current collector electrically coupled to the silicon-metal thin film anode layer.

2. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein a first layer of the pair of alternating layers contains silicon and a second layer of the pair of alternating layers contains at least one of carbon, tin, silver, aluminum, indium, titanium, thallium or copper or combinations thereof.

3. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein each pair of the plurality of pairs of alternating layers has a thickness of between about 2 nanometers and about 500 nanometers.

4. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein a first layer of the pair of alternating layers has a thickness of between about 1 nanometer and about 499 nanometers.

5. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein a second layer of the pair of alternating layers has a thickness of between about 1 nanometer and about 499 nanometers.

6. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode includes between about 1% to about 99% of a first one of the pair of alternating layers of material and wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode includes between about 99% to about 1% of a second one of the pair of alternating layers of material.

7. The battery of claim 1, wherein a sum of the thickness of the first current collector, the cathode layer of lithium ion containing material, the layer of electrolyte material and the silicon-metal thin film anode layer is between about 10 micrometers to about 50 micrometers

8. The battery of claim 1, wherein the anode layer has a thickness of between about 2 and about 10 um.

9. The battery of claim 1, wherein the solid electrolyte layer has a thickness of between about 0.50 to about 10 um.

10. The battery of claim 1, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer has a thickness of between about 2 micrometers and about 10 micrometers.

11. The battery of claim 1, wherein the substrate is a flexible substrate.

12. A method of forming a thin film battery comprising:

forming a first current collector on a substrate;

forming a cathode layer of the first current collector;

forming a solid electrolyte layer on the cathode layer;

forming silicon-metal thin film anode layer on the electrolyte layer; and

coupling the silicon-metal thin film anode layer to a second current collector.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the silicon-metal thin film anode layer includes a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein each pair of the plurality of pairs of alternating layers has a thickness of between about 2 nanometers and about 500 nanometers.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material are formed in a single processing chamber having at least two sources and a transport system and wherein forming the alternating layers of material includes transporting the substrate across each one of the at least two sources in an alternating manner.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material are formed in a rotary processing chamber having at least two sources and a rotary transport system and wherein forming the alternating layers of material includes transporting the substrate across each one of the at least two sources in an alternating manner.

16. A system for making a thin film battery comprising:

a chamber including;

at least two sources;

a transport system capable of transporting a substrate across each one of the at least two sources in an alternating manner;

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the chamber further includes a gas curtain between each of the at least two sources.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the chamber further includes a partial wall between each of the at least two sources.

19. The system of claim 16, further comprising a controller including:

logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming a first current collector on a substrate;

logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming a cathode layer on the first current collector;

logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming an electrolyte layer on the cathode layer;

logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming silicon-metal thin film anode layer on the electrolyte layer; and

logic stored on a computer readable medium for coupling the silicon-metal thin film anode layer to a second current collector.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming silicon-metal thin film anode layer on the electrolyte layer includes logic stored on a computer readable medium for forming a plurality of pairs of alternating layers of material wherein each pair of the plurality of pairs of alternating layers has a thickness of between about 2 nanometers and about 500 nanometers.