In order to better align with the rapid advancement of modern societies as well as minimize the civilization impacts on natural environments, there is ever-growing demands for energy storage systems (EESs), where the rechargeable lithium-ion battery (LIB) plays a vital role in a wide variety of applications ranging from portable electronic devices to electric vehicles (EVs). Therefore, it is crucial to design and fabricate rechargeable LIBs with tailored electrochemical properties according to specific needs. For example, while EVs require LIBs with high energy density that could sustain a long driving range, smartphones address more on fast charging capabilities with minimal heat generation. All of which depend on the fundamental battery science including thermodynamics and more importantly, transport kinetics in battery electrodes. As a graduate student from Materials Science and Engineering program, my PhD research aims to develop systematic understanding of the transport properties in nanostructured electrodes and rationally design thick electrodes with enhanced kinetics. With successive investigations of the underlying charge/electron transport kinetics from molecular level to electrode level, I developed in-depth understanding of the relationship between electrode architectures on multiple length scales and corresponding electrochemical properties. I believe my research could provide helpful insights towards LIB electrodes with desired characteristics.
