Spinel LiMn2O4 nanorods as lithium ion battery cathodes

Spinel LiMn2O4 is a low-cost, environmentally friendly, and highly abundant material for Li-ion battery cathodes. Here, we report the hydrothermal synthesis of single-crystalline beta-MnO2 nanorods and their chemical conversion into free-standing single-crystalline LiMn2O4 nanorods using a simple solid-state reaction. The LiMn2O4 nanorods have an average diameter of 130 nm and length of 1.2 microm. Galvanostatic battery testing showed that LiMn2O4 nanorods have a high charge storage capacity at high power rates compared with commercially available powders. More than 85% of the initial charge storage capacity was maintained for over 100 cycles. The structural transformation studies showed that the Li ions intercalated into the cubic phase of the LiMn2O4 with a small change of lattice parameter, followed by the coexistence of two nearly identical cubic phases in the potential range of 3.5 to 4.3 V.