C. Wolverton et A. Zunger, FIRST-PRINCIPLES PREDICTION OF VACANCY ORDER-DISORDER AND INTERCALATION BATTERY VOLTAGES IN LIXCOO2, Physical review letters, 81(3), 1998, pp. 606-609
We present a first-principles technique for predicting the ordered vac
ancy ground states, intercalation voltage profiles, and voltage-temper
ature phase diagrams of Li intercalation battery electrodes. Applicati
on to the LixCoO2 system yields correctly the observed ordered vacancy
phases. We further predict the existence of additional ordered phases
, their thermodynamic stability ranges, and their intercalation voltag
es in LixCoO2/Li battery cells. Our calculations provide insight into
the remarkable electronic stability of this system with respect to Li
removal: A rehybridization of the Co-O orbitals acts to restore charge
to the Co site (''self-regulating response''), thereby minimizing the
effect of the perturbation.