Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is an important technology for the electrocatalyst design which needs atomic-level controllability. Many transition-metal sulfides, such as FeSx, CoSx, and NiSx, exhibit superior activity toward electrocatalysis; however, the ALD of these metal sulfides is much less explored. In this presentation, we will present our latest progress on the ALD of FeSx, CoSx, and NiSx and their applications in electrocatalysis. The ALD of FeSx, CoSx, and NiSx (x≈1) can be achieved by using the corresponding metal amidinates as the metal precursors and H2S as the sulfur source[1-3]. If instead using the H2S plasma as the coreactant, the pyrite-type metal disulfides (i.e. FeS2, CoS2, and NiS2) can also be made by ALD[4]. These deposited sulfides exhibit superior performance toward HER, OER, and ORR[5-6], and therefore they can be used as the oxygen electrode catalyst in Zn-air batteries[6]. In this last, we will also discuss the ALD initial nucleation and growth mechanism for these metal sulfides, using in-situ XPS technique[7-8]; the results are of high importance for the engineering of the electrocatalyst at the atomic level.

Atomic layer deposition of FeSx, CoSx, and NiSx for electrocatalysis

2019 Fall National Meeting

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