Synergistic Interface Effects in Composite Dielectrics: Insights into Charge Trapping Regulation through Multiscale Modeling

TL;DR

This paper uses multiscale modeling to understand how interface effects in composite dielectrics influence charge trapping, revealing mechanisms that can guide the design of higher-performance energy storage materials.

Contribution

It introduces a multiscale modeling approach linking quantum and structural details to elucidate charge trapping mechanisms at interfaces in composite dielectrics.

Findings

Charges are trapped in disordered regions of the composite.

Back-transfer to oil is suppressed by energetic factors.

Forward-transfer to crystalline cellulose is suppressed by low electronic coupling.

Abstract

The rapid development of modern energy applications drives an urgent need to enhance the dielectric strength of energy storage dielectrics for higher power density. Interface design is a promising strategy to regulate the crucial charge transport process determining dielectric strength. However, the targeted exploitation of interface effects on charge transport is limited due to a lack of fundamental understanding of the underlying mechanisms involving elementary electronic processes and details of the intricate interplay of characteristics of molecular building blocks and the interfacial morphology -- details that cannot fully be resolved with experimental methods. Here we employ a multiscale modeling approach linking the quantum properties of the charge carriers with nano- and mesoscale structural details of complex interfaces. Applied to a prototypical application-proven cellulose-oil composite with interfaces formed between oil, disordered, and crystalline cellulose regions, this approach demonstrates that charges are trapped in the disordered region. Specifically, it unveils this trapping as a synergistic effect of two transport-regulating interface mechanisms: back-transfer to the oil region is suppressed by energetic factors, while forward-transfer to the crystalline cellulose is suppressed by low electronic coupling. The insight into the molecular origins of interface effects via dual-interface regulation offers new development paths for advanced energy materials.