Keynote Lectures

Keynote Lectures (KYL)

A special feature of highlighted presentations offers added value to the technical program. Lectures are dedicated to topics of fundamental interest for scientists and engineers in surface engineering. Presentations are individual and not “classic“ day-to-day R&D business. Discussion of new developments and trends of relevance to ICMCTF, both in materials science and in methodology, in a pioneering state, with long-term impact. Selected critical reviews in a field of relevance to ICMCTF. Recognition of colleagues with pioneering and lasting impact on ICMCTF.

Emanuele Sortino; U.S. Business Development Manager, BENEQ, Inc. Boulder Colorado

“Spatial Atomic Layer Deposition for High Throughput Industrial Production of Lithium-Ion Batteries and Photovoltaic Cells.”

Wednesday, May 14, 2025, 1:40 p.m.

Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) is an enabling thin film technology that found its use in energy applications such as energy storage (Li-ion batteries) and PV applications (TOPCon and perovskite PVs). Thin oxide coating deposited by ALD has been shown to improve battery performance through the introduction of thin film coatings to modify interface surfaces on cathodes, anodes, and separators.

ALD can help to improve thermal stability, stabilize Solid Electrolyte Interphase (SEI), suppress dendrite growth, inhibit transition metal dissolution, and increase interfacial contact between layers, all of which are current issues facing lithium-ion battery technology. ALD SnO2 has been a material of choice for electron transport layers (ETL) of perovskite-based solar cells and Al2O3 as a passivation layer for TOPCon solar cells.

Spatial ALD (SALD) is an advanced coating technique, which has been studied for more than 10 years for various applications. We will demonstrate how SALD technology can be used to scale up the throughput of ALD technology used in battery and PV applications.

Biography

Dr. Emanuele Sortino is the US Business Development Manager for Beneq, a company specializing in equipment and services of Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD). Dr. Sortino received his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering in 2021 from the University of Colorado Boulder. He has a background in ALD for MEMS for Optics and Energy Applications and has published multiple scientific papers in his area of expertise. In his current role as the Business Development Manager at Beneq Inc., the North American subsidiary of BENEQ, Dr. Sortino manages the sales of ALD equipment, and services, and proposes innovative solutions for customers across various sectors, such as microelectronics, nanotechnology, optics, and energy.