Lithium potential variations for metastable materials: case study of nanocrystalline and amorphous LiFePO4

Much attention has been paid to metastable materials in the lithium battery field, especially to nanocrystalline and amorphous materials. Nonetheless, fundamental issues such as lithium potential variations have not been pertinently addressed. Using LiFePO4 as a model system, we inspect such lithium potential variations for various lithium storage modes and evaluate them thermodynamically. The conclusions of this work are essential for an adequate understanding of the behavior of electrode materials and even helpful in the search for new energy materials.