We’re pleased to share that SparkNano has been featured in Battery News‘ latest publication ‘2024 Battery Atlas Highlights – Nine European Battery Market Sectors‘ which reflects the current involvement of cell manufacturers, module and pack producers, suppliers of equipment, and battery active materials as well as recycling companies and battery test centers.

‘The 2024 Battery Atlas covers nine different topics: Battery Cell Manufacturers, Module and Pack Manufacturers, Battery Equipment Suppliers, Active Material Suppliers, Recycling Companies, Battery Test Centers, Battery Quality Assurance Companies, Passive Battery Cell Component Companies, and Second-Life Battery Companies. Thus, this second edition provides an update on the subjects of its predecessor and at the same time is an addition to the initial Battery Atlas. Therefore, it covers a large part of the battery’s life cycle, starting with the active and passive cell components up to the recycling or second life of battery cells. SparkNano is listed among innovative equipment suppliers.

Lithium-ion batteries require very thin protective coatings, often referred to as passivation layers, to prevent degradation of the electrodes, which can lead to quick deterioration of the cycle life of the battery. Given the typically high porosity of these electrodes, Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) emerges as one of the most effective methods for applying these protective films. ALD produces films that are inherently uniform and conformal, even at very low thicknesses. Battery manufacturing, however, requires large-scale, high-throughput mass production methods, such as roll-to-roll processing, to ensure cost efficiency. This poses a significant challenge for conventional Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) when high-throughput processing must be combined with highly porous substrates, as longer exposure and purge times are anticipated.

In conventional ALD, precursors are sequentially introduced to create a monolayer of material on a substrate. Spatial ALD enhances this capability by introducing a spatial separation between the precursor and the co-reactant. In other words, rather than depositing the precursors directly onto the substrate in a sequential manner, they are physically separated in space. This innovation enables faster and more flexible deposition processes, addressing critical needs in battery manufacturing.