First-principles calculations on LixNiO2:: phase stability and monoclinic distortion

The phase diagram of LixNiO2 (0 < X < 1) and the evolution of the monoclinic distortion as a function of the lithium content are calculated using a combination of first-principles energy methods and statistical-mechanics techniques. As a function of the temperature different ordered LixNiO2 structures appear in the phase diagram at x = 0.25, 0.33, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.75. Noteworthy, a new and unsuspected phase, Li0.4NiO2, dominates the low-lithium region of the phase diagram. In agreement with experimental results, maxima in monoclinicity (a(m)/b(m).) are predicted to occur near Li0.75NiO2 and Li0.4NiO2. The coupling between the Li-vacancy ordering and the Jahn-Teller activity of Ni3+ ions plays a crucial role in the stability of ordered LixNiO2 structures and is at the origin of the monoclinic distortion. As a result, the different electrochemical behavior of LixNiO2 versus LixCoO2 lies in the electronic nature of the involved transition metal cation. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.