Flexible Thin Film Lithium Ion Rechargeable Battery

The purpose of this project is to fabricate a micro-size lithium ion battery for bio-integrated devices. The battery is to be integrated into an animal’s heart so that when the piezoelectric device converts the mechanical energy of heart into electrical energy, the battery can store it for later use. The project mainly focuses on the fabrication of a lithium ion battery with better performance (higher capacity and longer life cycle) on flexible substrates. Two methods of fabrication are currently in progress. One is to build a battery on Kapton film with a solid electrolyte, Lithium Phosphorus Oxynitride (LiPON) and the second method uses a flexible aluminum pouch substrate with liquid electrolyte inside. Once the fabrication conditions are optimized and the performance of the battery is achieved, it will be redesigned into micro-size for bio integration purposes. A number of challenges exist, such as oxidation of lithium along the fabrication process, deformation of the flexible substrate during the post annealing process which causes the degradation of the battery performance, and leakage of a liquid electrolyte in an aluminum pouch cell.unpublishednot peer reviewedU of I OnlyUndergraduate senior thesis not recommended for open acces