Research seminar – A need for effective energy storage drives research into improving and understanding current battery technologies. In lithium or sodium ion batteries, a solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) is formed when electrolyte components are reduced. The SEI formed will impact battery lifetime and efficiency. Characterizing the structure and dynamics of the electrolyte solutions before and during battery cycling can help provide a better understanding of each molecular component playing a role in SEI formation. Certain molecules like fluoroethylene carbonate when added to these organic carbonate electrolytes are shown to increase battery lifetimes. In this project, the impact of additives on the dynamics of organic carbonate electrolyte solutions are investigated using linear and 2D infrared spectroscopy (2D IR). The additive, fluoroethylene carbonate is shown to drive structural changes in the bulk electrolyte mixtures. Further chemical information can be gained by implementing 2D IR microscopy to spatially resolve dynamics in electrolyte solutions where behavior near interfaces or under an applied potential can vary spatially. This talk will discuss the chemical information that can be gleaned from 2D IR microscopy while also addressing practical considerations in the development of this new technique.