Thin films of antimony-tin oxide as counter-electrodes for proton working electrochromic devices

We report here on thin films proton-working electrochromic devices based on the well-known tungsten oxide as the coloring electrode, and Antimony Tin Oxide (ATO) as the ion-storage counter-electrode. We show that films deposited by Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) technique have an apparent Sb solubility up to 70 at %, and exhibit unusual electrochromic properties. Through potentiostatic tests we'll demonstrate that depending on the composition which influences film morphology, the Sn-Sb-O films could either present a faradic or a capacitive-like behavior, associated to a color or a neutral switching over a wide range of potentials, respectively. The structural properties of ATO films are characterized by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Electrochromic behavior is studied by means of cyclic voltamperometry coupled with ex situ optical transmittance measurements in the visible range. The maximum proton-storage capacity is observed for ATO films containing 40-50 at % Sb, while being quasi-neutral when switching over a wide range of potentials. These compositions are finally retained for the assembly of our WO₃/proton-electrolyte/ATO devices, whose performances are reported.