Uncovering the Effect of Lattice Strain and Oxygen Deficiency on Electrocatalytic Activity of Perovskite Cobaltite Thin Films.

Developing cost effective electrocatalysts with high oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity is essential for large-scale application of many electrochemical energy systems. Although the impacts of either lattice strain or oxygen defects on the OER performance of oxide catalysts have been extensively investigated, the effects of both factors are normally treated separately. In this work, the coupled effects of both strain and oxygen deficiency on the electrocatalytic activity of LaSrCoO (LSC) thin films grown on single crystal substrates (LaAlO3 (LAO) and SrTiO3 (STO)) are investigated.