Microscopic theory of ionic motion in solid electrolytes

Abstract

We propose a microscopic, first-principles description of the ionic conduction in crystals. This formalism allows us to gain new insights into the ideal characteristics of general ionic conducting materials and, in particular, solid electrolytes. Using \textit{ab initio} calculations, we show that our formalism results in ionic mobilities consistent with experiments for several materials. Our work opens the possibility of developing solid electrolytes based on fundamental physical principles rather than empirical descriptions of the underlying processes.