Fabrication and structural characterization of interdigitated thin film La1-xSrcCoO3(LSCO) electrodes

For the prospective use as micro-Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (mu-SOFC) cathodes and for the investigation of reaction kinetics, La1 - xSrxCoO3 (LSCO) mixed ionic electronic conducting thin films were deposited by DC and RF sputtering onto a number of different substrate materials and characterized. Standard photolithographic and wet chemical etching methods were utilized to microstructure the LSCO films and XRD, SEM, AFM, WDS, and RBS were used to characterize their structure, topography, and chemistry. Sputtering resulted in very homogeneous and smooth thin crystalline films with Sr deficiency and submicron sized grains. Hydrochloric acid was found to readily etch LSCO with the etching quality strongly dependent on substrate material. LSCO films were most easily etched when deposited directly on silicon substrates, etched at intermediate rates when deposited on Gd:CeO2 films, and most resistant to etching after deposition onto single crystal yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) substrates. Imperfect etching was attributed to interface formation and the presence of impurities.