Investigation of in-situ ion release and surface film formation of hcp Mg-Li thin films

In this work, the dissolution process of magnetron sputtered Mg-Li thin films was investigated by in-situ flow cell/ICP-MS measurements and ex-situ ICP-MS measurements after longer immersion and additional XPS measurements. High Li concentrations are released due to a Li rich carbonate layer formed in air. The depletion of Li leads to preferred Mg release before preferred Li release occurs due to the higher activity of Li and incorporation of Mg in corrosion products. This data provides a baseline for developing release profiles for medical application, more generally, it unravels details of the corrosion mechanism of lightweight MgLi alloys. • Comparison of short-term and long-term elementally resolved ion release of Mg-Li. • Li 2 CO 3 forms on as sputtered and corroded hcp MgLi in air. • Dissolution of Li rich layer upon contact with solution. • Change of ion release during immersion from preferred Mg to Li release. • Higher Li content increases surface film formation and preferred Li release.