Electrochemical Studies on Niobium Triselenide Cathode Material for Lithium Rechargeable Cells

Niobium triselenide offers promise as a high energy density cathode material for ambient temperature lithium rechargeable cells. The electrochemical behavior of in the battery electrolyte, i.e. , is reported here. A detailed study has been carried out using various ac and dc electrochemical techniques to establish the mechanism of intercalation of three equivalents of Li with as well as the rate governing processes in the reduction of . Based on the experimental data, an equivalent circuit has been formulated to represent the interface. The kinetic parameters for the reduction of were evaluated from the ac and dc measurements. Finally, the structural change in on lithiation during initial discharge which results in higher cell voltages and different electrochemical response as compared to virgin was identified to be a loss of crystallographic order, i.e. , "amorphous by x‐ray diffraction."