Publications
Advancing research through innovation
Explore peer-reviewed publications showcasing how illumion systems are helping scientists uncover new insights into electrode materials
Energy & Environmental Science
Current strategies to speed up charging often involve creating more porous or thinner electrodes to improve lithium-ion transport. However, more porosity means less active material per volume, reducing energy density. Here single-crystal nickel-rich NMC was compressed to a very high density before a pulsed laser was used to “drill” precise channels into the material, creating an electrode that still has relatively low porosity despite the added holes.
Charge photometry revealed that these laser-patterned channels offer improved performance at high cycling rates through improved ion transport through the electrode.
Journal of the American Chemical Society
This study examines lithium-ion transport in octahedral, nickel-rich NMC cathodes using charge photometry. By optically tracking relative intensity changes operando under charge-rest protocols, lithiation dynamics at single-particle and individual-facet level were resolved.
This revealed distinct delithiation behaviour across basal and side planes and, corroborated by finite element simulation, previously underappreciated interparticle communication.
Journal of The Electrochemical Society
Optically-accessible cells for operando battery studies often compromise electrochemical performance. Here, four optically-accessible coin-cell designs are benchmarked against standard coin cells, with the free-standing and perforated-foil geometries matching electrochemical performance of the standard cell.
One design was then paired with charge photometry to capture the lithiation and delithiation dynamics of lithium cobalt oxide with single-particle resolution.
Journal of The Electrochemical Society
Silicon promises higher-energy batteries, but its swelling has limited adoption. This work establishes charge photometry as a practical lab tool for resolving particle-scale chemo-mechanics in real time.
Combining operando dilatometry with operando charge photometry, this study shows that silicon-carbon composites expand non-linearly because internal porosity buffers early lithiation. Crucially, particle swelling proved fully reversible and first-cycle irreversibility comes from cell-level effects, not the material itself.
Energy & Environmental Science
Operando single-particle imaging reveals that asymmetric ion flux contributes to capacity degradation in aged Ni-rich layered cathodes
Charge photometry uncovers how uneven rocksalt layers formed during aging distort Li-ion transport inside Ni-rich NMC particles. These asymmetric gradients undermine capacity and rate performance, exposing a previously unseen degradation mechanism and pointing the way to more durable, high-energy cathodes.
nature
Operando optical tracking of single-particle ion dynamics in batteries
illumion’s co-founders unveil charge photometry, an operando optical imaging technique that visualises lithium-ion dynamics in real-time at the nanoscale, exposing hidden phase transitions and diffusion behaviours to accelerate breakthroughs in fast-charging batteries.
nature - News and Views
Ion dynamics in battery materials imaged rapidly
"An imaging method has been developed that tracks ion transport in functioning battery materials in real time, at submicrometre scales — offering insights into how to design batteries that charge in minutes."
Joule
Operando visualization of kinetically induced lithium heterogeneities in single-particle layered Ni-rich cathodes:
The mechanism by which lithium ions are stored in high energy density lithium-ion battery materials is typically assumed to be uniform across individual active particles. Here, by using charge photometry and diffusive modelling, the authors directly image and track the buildup of kinetically induced lithium-ion heterogeneity within individual particles during battery operation in nickel-rich manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathodes.
nature materials
Operando monitoring of single-particle kinetic state-of-charge heterogeneities and cracking in high-rate Li-ion anodes
Charge photometry reveals how fast-charging NWO particles behave at high C-rates, exposing hidden kinetic phase separation, real-time volume shifts, and cracking. These single-particle insights uncover limits to high-rate performance and point the way to smarter, more durable fast-charging battery designs.
Energy & Environmental Science
Navigating low state of charge phase transitions in layered cathodes for long-life sodium-ion batteries
By employing a combination of operando techniques, including charge photometry, the authors demonstrate that the O3–P3 phase transition of the cathode material NFM results in severe morphological and interfacial degradation, ultimately leading to rapid performance deterioration.
