PhD on Atomic layer deposition for Li-ion batteries

Are you willing to contribute to the next generation of Li-ion batteries for mobile applications, with enhanced energy density and storage capacity, improved lifetime, and safety? If so, we invite you to be part of this exciting journey and to solve the material and interface challenges in the present Li-ion battery technology.

We are looking for an experimentalist with knowledge and expertise in material science, thin film and surface characterization and gas phase deposition technologies, specifically atomic layer deposition. We have particular interest in someone who is motivated to tackle the material and interface challenges in the present Li-ion battery technologies, such as electrochemical/chemical instability of electrolyte/electrode interfaces, for example occurring when high-voltage cathodes are considered. As PhD candidate you will have the opportunity to focus on ALD high voltage cathodes such as spinel oxides and investigate how the chemical composition and crystallographic properties affect the interface with (liquid and solid) electrolytes. You will be also in charge of engineering strategies to deliver (electro-)chemical and mechanically stable electrode/electrolyte interfaces. The following research topics are highly appealing (but not exhaustive): (plasma-assisted) atomic layer deposition, thin film and surface diagnostics, Li-ion batteries, electrochemistry.

You will join the Plasma & Materials Processing (PMP, www.tue.nl/pmp ) research group at the Department of Applied Physics and Science Education of the TU/e. The present research in the PMP group embraces several research lines such as the experimental investigation of the plasma medium, in situ and operando studies of interaction of reactive species with surfaces, and (plasma-based) synthesis at the atomic scale of materials of interest in many fields in science and technology, including next-generation energy devices. You will have access to state-of-the-art lab and clean room facilities (https://www.tue.nl/en/research/research-groups/nanolabtue/nanolabtue ) in aforementioned areas. You will also be embedded in the Eindhoven Institute of Renewable Energy Systems (EIRES, https://www.tue.nl/en/research/research-areas/energy/eindhoven-institute-for-renewable-energy-systems-eires ). Moreover, you will collaborate with other PhD candidates and postdoc researchers within the recently granted Dutch project BatteryNL-Next generation batteries based on understanding material interfaces, with a broad consortium consisting of academics, high-tech startups, multinationals, and societal partners.

In addition to research, you will also contribute to education within the department of Applied Physics and Science Education. Next to the supervision of BSc and MSc students in their research projects, other assistance in education, e.g., in bachelor courses, is usually limited to around 5% of your contract time.