skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Simulation of the surface structure of lithium manganese oxide spinel.

Journal Article · · Phys. Rev. B
;  [1]
  1. Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division

Simulations of the surface structure of low-index surfaces of LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} (LMO), a candidate Li-ion battery electrode material, have been performed within the GGA+U approximation, using the VASP code. Surfaces of (001), (110), and (111) orientation were considered, with at least two terminations treated in each case. A slab geometry was employed, with termination-layer vacancies introduced to remove the bulk dipole moment while maintaining ideal stoichiometry. To complement static-structure relaxation calculations, molecular-dynamics simulations were performed to explore the phase space of possible surface reconstructions. A reconstruction is predicted for the Mn-terminated (111) surface, in which the top layers mix in stoichiometric proportions to form an LMO termination layer with square-planar-coordinated Mn. Average surface Mn oxidation states are reduced, relative to the bulk, for all surfaces considered, as a consequence of the lower-energy cost of Jahn-Teller distortion at the surface. Threefold-coordinated surface Mn, found for two terminations, is divalent, which may enhance its vulnerability to dissolution. The Li-terminated (001) surface is lowest in energy, consistent with previous classical-potential simulations for MgAl{sub 2}O{sub 4} that showed the Mg-terminated (001) surface to be lowest in energy.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
EE
DOE Contract Number:
DE-AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
1018504
Report Number(s):
ANL/CSE/JA-69811; TRN: US201114%%35
Journal Information:
Phys. Rev. B, Vol. 83, Issue 19 ; May 31, 2011
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH