Laser Structuring of Electrodes and its Perspectives for Battery Production

Worldwide, there is a strong demand for increasing energy and power density of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. For this purpose, a new approach was established by introducing the 3D battery concept which is realized by ultrafast laser structuring of electrodes. A significant improvement of electrochemical performance data was achieved. This concerns a reduction of scrap rate, boost in battery lifetime, high-rate and fast charging capabilities, as well as safety issues. Due to those outstanding benefits, laser materials processing and its upscaling including roll-to-roll processing is currently attracting huge attention. Post mortem studies were carried out to study degradation processes and to illustrate the formation of new lithium diffusion pathways in composite electrodes. It was shown that 3D batteries benefit from a homogenous lithiation/delithiation, reduced compressive stress, and overall improved electrochemical properties in comparison to conventional batteries.