Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are attracting attention as next-generation energy conversion devices due to their high efficiency, eco-friendliness, and scalability. However, the high operation temperature of conventional SOFCs (> 800°C) has posed several practical issues such as thermal degradation and limited material choice. To overcome this limitation, low-temperature SOFC (LT-SOFC, operation temperature <600°C) is actively being researched these days. Ni-YSZ (nickel-yttria stabilized zirconia) is commonly used as anode material in SOFCs. Ni-YSZ anodes are reasonably conductive at high operating temperatures and stable under harsh reducing conditions. However, at lower operating temperatures, the low conductivity of Ni-YSZ becomes an issue for use as an anode. Using doped ceria instead of YSZ is considered an alternative because the doped ceria has higher conductivity compared to YSZ due to the co-existence of multivalent states, i.e., Ce3+ and Ce4+, which can be further improved by doping. Moreover, if one adopts a carefully designed anode structure, e.g., gradient structure, the electrochemical performance of Ni-doped ceria anode can be further improved. Employing nanoscale components, e.g., thin films, are also one of the strategies to improve the electrode kinetics at the low operating temperature of LT-SOFCs. Thin film electrodes with short electronic and ionic paths as well as high surface area contribute to low ohmic and activation resistances. While high uniformity, reproducibility and throughout are practical concerns in thin film fabrication, reactive sputtering, which can produce uniform ceramic thin films from metal target in reactive gas environment in high reproducibility ad deposition rate, is a suitable candidate for thin film components for SOFCs.

In this study, we fabricate a Ni-Samaria doped ceria(SDC) gradient anode by reactive co-sputtering. We prepare and characterize the cells with homogeneous and gradient-structured Ni-SDC thin film anodes. The gradient Ni-SDC thin film anode is composed of three layers, whose compositions are graded in a way that the Ni content increases from bottom (near electrolyte-anode interface) to top (anode top-surface). Possibly due to the combination of facilitated ionic conduction near electrolyte-anode interface and higher catalytic activity at anode surface, we observe the improved anode kinetics with lower activation resistance in the cell with gradient-structured Ni-SDC anode compared to the one with homogeneous anode.