Nanocomposite Platinum–Yttria Stabilized Zirconia Electrode and Implications for Micro-SOFC Operation

Thin-film composite electrodes with nanometric grains of platinum and yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) were reactively sputtered onto single-crystal yttria-stabilized zirconia. The activation polarization resistance exhibited an activation energy of and was found to have an approximate inverse dependence on microelectrode radius squared, consistent with, effectively, a mixed ionic–electronic conductive nature. Area specific polarization resistances of less than were achieved at 400°C in a dense thin-film electrode. The attractiveness of these nanocomposite electrodes for use in microfabricated solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), of interest as portable power sources, is discussed.