Direct observation of lithium staging in partially delithiated LiFePO4 at atomic resolution

Lin Gu; Changbao Zhu; Hong Li; Yan Yu; Chilin Li; Susumu Tsukimoto; Joachim Maier; Yuichi Ikuhara

doi:10.1021/ja109412x

Direct observation of lithium staging in partially delithiated LiFePO4 at atomic resolution

J Am Chem Soc. 2011 Apr 6;133(13):4661-3. doi: 10.1021/ja109412x. Epub 2011 Mar 10.

Authors

Lin Gu¹, Changbao Zhu, Hong Li, Yan Yu, Chilin Li, Susumu Tsukimoto, Joachim Maier, Yuichi Ikuhara

Affiliation

¹ WPI Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980 8577, Japan. gu@wpi-aimr.tohoku.ac.jp

PMID: 21391668
DOI: 10.1021/ja109412x

Abstract

Lithium ions in LiFePO(4) were observed directly at atomic resolution by an aberration-corrected annular-bright-field scanning transmission electron microscopy technique. In addition, it was found in partially delithiated LiFePO(4) that the remaining lithium ions preferably occupy every second layer, along the b axis, analogously to the staging phenomenon observed in some layered intercalation compounds. This new finding challenges previously proposed LiFePO(4)/FePO(4) two-phase separation mechanisms.