Delafossite CuCrO2 is a p-type metal oxide which can be applied as a hole transport layer in heterojunction solar cells. Synthesizing this material has been challenged by the CuO and Cu2O impurities grown alongside CuCrO2. Previously there has been no reported optimization of the synthetic process to grow pristine delafossite CuCrO2. Forming CuO and Cu2O byproducts, in addition to the facile introduction of defects into the structure, has lead to a wide range of reported optical band gap values and little electrochemical characterization. Here, we optimize the hydrothermal synthetic process in attempt to produce nanocrystalline delafossite CuCrO2 in the absence of byproducts, as confirmed by UV-Vis, EDS, and ICP-MS studies. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used to investigate the electrochemical properties of the pristine delafossite CuCrO2, in addition to how unwanted byproducts may affect the observed properties of the material. Additionally, a comparison of electrochemistry was conducted using varying electrolyte solutions, and the presence of lithium ions was noted to increase the observed capacity of the material, implying that CuCrO2 may be able to function as a cathode in Li-ion batteries. Detailed electrochemical studies on this Li+ dependence and the effect of unwanted byproducts will be further presented.

Electrochemical properties of synthetically optimized p-type CuCrO2

ACS Spring 2022

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