Kinetic pathways of ionic transport in fast-charging lithium titanate
Wei Zhang, Dong‐Hwa Seo, Tina Chen, Lijun Wu, Mehmet Topsakal, Yimei Zhu, Deyu Lu, Gerbrand Ceder, Feng Wang
Abstract
Metastable pathways allow high rates In batteries that allow for fast charging and discharging, lithium usually forms a solid solution with the anode so that the only limiting factor is the ionic diffusion. However, for a lithium titanate (Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 ) anode, the lithium ions interact with two phases and the diffusion is slow in both, but it still shows high-rate capabilities. Zhang et al. used electron energy-loss spectroscopy combined with density functional theory calculations to probe the anomalous behavior. They found that a diffuse interface forms between the starting and ending compositions, Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 and Li 7 Ti 5 O 12 , and this is what allows the lithium ions to travel quickly. Science , this issue p. 1030