General Synthesis of Single-Crystal Spinel Cathodes with the Tailored Orientation of Exposed Crystal Planes for Advanced Lithium-Ion Batteries

The spinel Mn-based cathodes with 3D Li+ diffusion channels, high voltage, and low-cost show promise for developing high-power lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). But the disproportionation and Jahn-Teller distortion lead to structural degeneration and capacity decay, especially at high working temperatures. Herein, considering the merits of single crystals and orientation of exposed crystal planes, single-crystal truncated octahedral LiMn2O4 (TO-LMO) with exposed {111}, {100} and {110} facets is rationally designed, in which the mainly exposed {111} facets are truncated by a small portion of {100} and {110} facets. The Li-deficient intermediate phase is innovatively proposed to prepare the single-crystal TO-LMO. The synergistic effects of single crystals and the orientation of exposed crystal planes significantly reduce the disproportionation of Mn3+ ions and thereby improve their structural stability. Consequently, the cycling stability of the single-crystal TO-LMO is remarkably enhanced, obtaining outstanding capacity retention of 84.3% after 2000 cycles, much better than that of 61.2% for octahedral LiMn2O4. The feasibility of preparing single-crystal truncated octahedral LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 with exposed {111}, {100}, and {110} facets via the Li-deficient intermediate phase is further demonstrated. These findings offer new insight into regulating the orientation of exposed crystal planes and improving the reversibility of Mn-based redox couples in LIBs.