High resolution analysis of ionic liquid

Ionic liquid is composed of cationic and anionic molecules, and one of the most promising material for next generation electric and battery devices because of their characteristic properties, namely non-volatility even under ultrahigh vacuum and electric conductivity. Furthermore, their properties, such as viscosity and electro-conductivity, can be controlled by designing the molecular structure. However, although analysing their nano-structures and atomic/molecular behaviour is indispensable to grasp the mechanism, detailed understanding of them is still a challenging problem because of lack of high spatial resolution analytical methods for them. Here, we have developed a method to directly image the single atoms in liquid phases using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). We have prepared an ultra-thin (1~50 nm) liquid sample of ionic liquid C2mim-TFSI and C8mim-Br. This liquid sample was confirmed to be suitable for STEM/TEM-EELS analysis [1]. Then, we have observed the liquid using high-angle annular….