Influence of support material on formation of electrocatalytic thin films—a secondary ion mass spectrometry study

The influence of various support materials, such as nickel and titanium, on the structure of TiO2, RuO2, RuO2/TiO2 and IrO2/TiO2 electrocatalytic thin films was investigated in detail by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The coatings were prepared by heat treatment following literature procedure. It is shown that various support materials can favor the formation and can influence the ion yield of ionic species with different oxidation states. The penetration characteristics of TiO2 in two-component systems on the same support are influenced by the nature of the noble metal. Furthermore, changes in the structure of the coatings due to method and time of storage may be detected by SIMS analysis.