Electrochromism by polarization of semiconducting ionic materials

Abstract

Electrochromic effects are observed by employing a single mixed ionic and electronic conducting layer in-between two transparent electronic leads. Besides the simplicity of the arrangement, the advantage is the displacement of ions only within one phase rather than across phase boundaries as required by conventional devices.

The applied voltage controls the compositions at the two interfaces according to Nernst's law independent of ions being majority or minority charge carriers. Appropriate materials are intrinsic conductors in the unpolarized transparent state which become n-type and p-type conducting at the negative and positive electrode side, respectively. Several materials have been investigated, such as lithiated tungsten oxide and lithium/tantalum co-doped tungsten oxide.