The Zintl compound Ca5Al2Sb6 has extremely low lattice thermal conductivity (<0.6 W/mK at 1000 K) and tunable electronic properties, making it a promising thermoelectric material for high temperature waste-heat recovery. The current study investigates trends in the chemical and transport properties of the Ca5 M 2Sb6 compounds (M = Al, Ga, or In), revealing potential routes toward improved thermoelectric properties in this system. Here, we show that isoelectronic M-site substitutions can be used to “fine-tune” the electronic properties of the Ca5 M 2Sb6 system, without inducing electronic doping effects. Electronic structure calculations reveal that the electronegativity of the M element is a good indicator for the energy level of M electronic states. The effects of M-site substitutions on the effective mass and band gap are reflected in measurements of the high temperature electronic properties of Ca5 M 2Sb6 samples (M = Al, Ga, and In) which reveal increased hole mobility as well as a smaller thermal band gap in the Ga analogue, relative to Ca5Al2Sb6 and Ca5In2Sb6. Optical absorption measurements reveal a trend in the direct band gaps consistent with both calculations and transport measurements. Additionally, a direct benefit of substituting heavier elements on the Al site arises from the increased density and softer lattice, which leads to reduced sound velocity and lattice thermal conductivity.

Mechanical degradation of lithium-ion battery (LIB) electrodes has been correlated with capacity fade and impedance growth over repeated charging and discharging. Knowledge of how the mechanical properties of materials used in LIBs are affected by electrochemical lithiation and delithiation could provide insight into design choices that mitigate mechanical damage and extend device lifetime. Here, we measured Young's modulus E, hardness H, and fracture toughness K Ic via instrumented nanoindentation of the prototypical intercalation cathode, Li X CoO 2 , after varying durations of electrochemical charging. After a single charge cycle, E and H decreased by up to 60%, while K Ic decreased by up to 70%. Microstructural characterization using optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and further nanoindentation showed that this degradation in K Ic was attributable to Li depletion at the material surface and was also correlated with extensive microfracture at grain boundaries. These results indicate that K Ic reduction and irreversible microstructural damage occur during the first cycle of lithium deintercalation from polycrystalline aggregates of Li X CoO 2 , potentially facilitating further crack growth over repeated cycling. Such marked reduction in K Ic over a single charge cycle also yields important implications for the design of electrochemical shock-resistant cathode materials. Energy storage is an enabling technology for electrified transportation and for large-scale deployment of renewable energy resources such as solar and wind. For many applications, non-aqueous ionintercalation chemistries such as Li-ion are attractive for their high energy density and electrochemical reversibility. However, the electrode materials used in ion-intercalation batteries undergo significant composition changes-which correlate to high storage capacity-that can induce structural changes and mechanical stresses; these changes can degrade battery performance metrics such as power, achievable storage capacity, and lifetime.1-8 Microstructural damage has been observed directly in numerous electrode materials subjected to electrochemical cycling, both within single crystals (or grains) and among polycrystalline aggregates. 4,5,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] While the relationships among electrode microstructure, electrochemical cycling conditions, crystallographic changes in the active materials, and resulting mechanical stresses have been elucidated, relatively little is known about the composition-dependency of the key physical properties. Numerous models have been developed to predict mechanical deformation in ion-storage materials during electrochemical cycling, as recently reviewed by Mukhopadhyay and Sheldon. 16 The quantitative utility of such models is dependent on measured elastoplastic properties, particularly the fracture toughness of these materials. To date, few experimental measurements of fracture toughness K Ic of battery materials have been reported; [17][18][19][20] similarly, few measureme...

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Actuator operation in increasingly extreme and remote conditions requires materials that reliably sense and actuate at elevated temperatures, and over a range of gas environments. Design of such materials will rely on high-temperature, high-resolution approaches for characterizing material actuation in situ. Here, we demonstrate a novel type of high-temperature, low-voltage electromechanical oxide actuator based on the model material PrCeO (PCO). Chemical strain and interfacial stress resulted from electrochemically pumping oxygen into or out of PCO films, leading to measurable film volume changes due to chemical expansion. At 650 °C, nanometre-scale displacement and strain of >0.1% were achieved with electrical bias values <0.1 V, low compared to piezoelectrically driven actuators, with strain amplified fivefold by stress-induced structural deflection. This operando measurement of films 'breathing' at second-scale temporal resolution also enabled detailed identification of the controlling kinetics of this response, and can be extended to other electrochemomechanically coupled oxide films at extreme temperatures.