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University of Oxford to use PHI VersaProbe III for Cutting-Edge Battery Research
X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) has been chosen by the #1 university in the world, for research into Li-ion batteries. The University of Oxford is adding XPS to their materials research capabilities, with the addition of a cutting-edge scanning XPS microprobe.
The new technology will be used for research into Lithium ion batteries at the University of Oxford’s Department of Materials. Their work is funded by the Faraday Institution, a government-sponsored initiative to accelerate battery development in the UK.
The group at Oxford are leading a £12 million fast-start research project into solid-state Li and Na metal anodes, which brings together seven universities. The aim is to transform battery technology by increasing energy density, to give us more energy from smaller batteries.
The XPS system is a VersaProbe III from Physical Electronics. The university chose the VersaProbe for its unique features, including a 4 contact ambient stage for testing materials in-situ. A vacuum transfer vessel and glove box will be used to protect the air-sensitive Lithium. The system is under installation at the time of this release.
The same XPS system is used by the Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois, for research into how battery performance changes over time and the causes of degradation. They use the VersaProbe to examine anode surfaces and observe changes in composition over a battery’s lifetime, in their post-test characterization facility.
The system at Oxford is supplied by Blue Scientific, the official UK distributor for Physical Electronics. Based in Cambridge, Blue Scientific delivers a market-leading portfolio of scientific instruments for materials science and microscopy, to leading research centers in the UK and Nordic region. Blue Scientific has plans for educational workshops at the University of Oxford, as well as collaborative work and demonstrations.
About Physical Electronics:
Physical Electronics is a subsidiary of ULVAC-PHI, the world's leading supplier of UHV surface analysis instrumentation for research and development of advanced materials in a number of high technology fields. They provide unique tools to solve challenging problems and accelerate the development of new materials and products.