Interfacial phenomena associated with Li electrodeposition on liquid Ga substrates in propylene carbonate

Li electrodeposition on liquid Ga substrates was carried out in PC-LiClO4 at 40 °C. It was found that interfacial flow phenomena were induced by differences in interfacial tension between the liquid Ga and the liquid Ga-Li alloy formed on the substrate under potentiostatic electrolysis at −1.0 V (vs. Li+/Li), which caused the interfacial shape change of the liquid Ga electrode. We carried out in-situ observations in order to understand why such interfacial phenomena occur between the liquid electrolyte and the liquid metal cathode. Moreover, a significant difference in electrochemical response between liquid and solid Ga substrates was also noticed employing the current-time transient technique. These experimental results suggest that the process of liquid Ga-Li phase formation by the dissolution of electrodeposited Li atoms into the liquid Ga substrate dominated during the initial stage of Li electrodeposition. In contrast, the typical peaks induced by growth of solid Ga-Li alloy phase and Li metal phase were observed on solid Ga substrates. These results provide new insight into the design of electrochemical processing involving liquid electrolyte/liquid metal interface. Keywords: Liquid metal electrode, Interfacial phenomenon, Non-aqueous solvent