Pulsed laser deposition of novel materials for thin film solid oxide fuel cell applications: Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95, La0.7Sr0.3CoOy and La0.7Sr0.3Co0.2Fe0.8Oy

The growth, by pulsed laser deposition (PLD), and characterisation of thin films of Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95 (CGO), La0.7Sr0.3CoOy and La0.7Sr0.3Co0.2Fe0.8Oy, for solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) application has been investigated. The structural quality and chemical composition was evaluated using X-ray diffraction and secondary ion mass spectrometry. Energy-dispersive mass spectrometry was also used as a method of characterising the ablated plume and gas phase species. During the ablation of CGO, significant numbers of molecular ions of CeO+ and GdO+ were observed in the plume, even in vacuum. The presence of these species suggests that the background gas pressure required, during deposition, to maintain stoichiometry is required to enhance the sticking coefficient of Ce+ on the surface. The effects of deposition parameters on the angular distribution of material has also been investigated using a quartz crystal microbalance.