Investigations of Ion Migration and Chemical Reactivity in Energy and Electronic Materials

The performance of modern energy and electronic devices is governed by the interplay between their electrical properties and charge carrier dynamics at the nanoscale. While the physical mechanisms behind these behaviors have been widely studied, the chemical factors remain comparatively underexplored due to the lack of techniques capable of resolving nanoscale chemical variations with high precision and dynamic sensitivity.

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has transformed nanoscale characterization by enabling high-resolution mapping of material properties, yet it lacks sufficient chemical sensitivity. Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) has recently emerged as a powerful complementary method, offering exceptional chemical sensitivity and spatial resolution for identifying and mapping compositional variations that influence functional behavior.

Here, we demonstrate the integration of ToF-SIMS with advanced AFM-based techniques to uncover chemical contributions to the functionality of energy and electronic materials, including ferroelectrics, photovoltaics, and memristors. This combined approach enables the study of static and dynamic chemical phenomena under operando conditions, providing critical insight into the mechanisms governing device performance and reliability.