Direct tracking of lithium ions with time and spatial resolution can provide an important
diagnostic tool for understanding mechanisms in lithium ion batteries. A fluorescent indicator
of lithium ions, 2-(2-hydroxyphenyl) naphthoxazole, was synthesized and used for real-time
tracking of lithium ions via widefield fluorescence microscopy. The fluorophore can be
excited with visible light and was shown to enable quantitative determination of the lithium
ion diffusion constant in a microfluidic model system for a plasticized polymer electrolyte …