Development of laser structuring of LNMO cathodes with optimized battery performance and increased process efficiency

Enhancing lithium-ion battery performance requires electrode architectures that shorten lithium ion transport pathways while preserving the active material. This work investigates how nanosecond laser ablation applied either as single pulses or in bursts affects the ablation behavior and electrochemical performance of high-voltage LNMO cathodes. The results show that laser structuring in general improves the rate capability of LNMO electrodes at elevated C-rates due to a reduction of the electrodes ionic resistance. When both ablation modes are adjusted to produce identical channel geometries, the resulting electrochemical performance is nearly the same, indicating that the structure morphology rather than the specific ablation mode is responsible for the performance enhancement. However, burst mode processing enables a higher manufacturing productivity, as its more efficient material removal reduces the required laser power and number of scan repetitions needed to achieve the same channel architecture.