A lithium battery including: a cathode; an anode; and an electrolyte between the cathode and the anode, wherein the electrolyte includes a lithium salt and a non-aqueous solvent including ethylene carbonate (EC), an amount of the EC per 100 parts by volume of the non-aqueous solvent is about 5 parts by volume to about 15 parts by volume, and wherein the cathode includes a cathode active material represented by Formula 1,
Li.sub.xNi.sub.yM.sub.1-yO.sub.2-zA.sub.z  Formula 1 wherein, in Formula 1, 0.9≤x≤1.2, 0.7≤y≤0.98, and 0≤z≤0.2, M is Al, Mg, Mn, Co, Fe, Cr, V, Ti, Cu, B, Ca, Zn, Zr, Nb, Mo, Sr, Sb, W, Bi, or a combination thereof, and A is an element having an oxidation number of −1 or −2,
wherein each element of M is independently present in an amount of 0<(1−y)≤0.3,
wherein an total content of M is 0.02≤(1−y)≤0.3.

Provided is a lithium secondary battery comprising a cathode, an anode, and an electrolyte or separator-electrolyte assembly disposed between the cathode and the anode, wherein the anode comprises: (a) An anode current collector, initially having no lithium or lithium alloy as an anode active material when the battery is made and prior to a charge or discharge operation; and (b) a thin layer of a high-elasticity polymer in ionic contact with the electrolyte and having a recoverable tensile strain from 2% to 700%, a lithium ion conductivity no less than 10.sup.−8 S/cm, and a thickness from 0.5 nm to 100 μm. Preferably, the high-elasticity polymer contains a cross-linked network of polymer chains having an ether linkage, nitrile-derived linkage, benzo peroxide-derived linkage, ethylene oxide linkage, propylene oxide linkage, vinyl alcohol linkage, cyano-resin linkage, triacrylate monomer-derived linkage, tetraacrylate monomer-derived linkage, or a combination thereof in the cross-linked network of polymer chains.

Articles and methods including additives in electrochemical cells, are generally provided. As described herein, such electrochemical cells may comprise an anode, a cathode, an electrolyte, and optionally a separator. In some embodiments, at least one of the anode, the cathode, the electrolyte, and/or the optional separator may comprise an additive and/or additive precursor. For instance, in some cases, the electrochemical cell comprises an electrolyte and an additive and/or additive precursor that is soluble with and/or is present in the electrolyte. In some embodiments, the additive precursor comprises a disulfide bond. In certain embodiments, the additive is a carbon disulfide salt. In some cases, the electrolyte may comprise a nitrate.

The present disclosure provides an electrode piece and a battery. The electrode piece includes a current collector and a functional layer arranged on a first surface of the current collector, a tab is further arranged in middle of the first surface, and the functional layer on the first surface has a first slope area near the tab and a first normal area away from the tab, and a thickness of the first slope area gradually decreases along a direction towards the tab. The present disclosure can improve performances of the battery, such as rate capacity, safety and the like.

Disclosed is a method of manufacturing a lithium metal unit cell for sulfide-based all-solid-state batteries and a unit cell manufactured using the same, and more particularly to a method of manufacturing a lithium metal unit cell for sulfide-based all-solid-state batteries wherein pressing is performed using cold isostatic pressing at higher than 100 MPa to lower than 470 MPa irrespective of time or pressing is performed at 470 MPa for 1 minute in order to reduce interface resistance of a sulfide-based all-solid-state battery using a lithium metal as a negative electrode and a unit cell manufactured using the same.

A composite cathode active material for an all-solid-state battery including a sulfide solid electrolyte, a preparation method thereof, a cathode layer for an all-solid-state battery, and an all-solid-state battery including the cathode layer, the composite cathode active material including a secondary particle including a plurality of primary particles; and a buffer layer on a surface of the secondary particle, wherein the secondary particle includes a nickel lithium transition metal oxide represented by Formula 1 (Li.sub.aNi.sub.1-bM.sub.bO.sub.2), the buffer layer includes a first buffer layer adjacent to a surface of the secondary particle and including an oxide represented by Formula 2 (Li.sub.xA.sub.yO.sub.z); and a second buffer layer including an oxide represented by Formula 3 (Li.sub.xE.sub.yO.sub.z).

A composite cathode active material, a preparation method thereof, a cathode layer for an all-solid-state battery, and an all-solid-state battery including the cathode layer, the composite cathode active material for the all-solid-state battery including a secondary particle including a plurality of primary particles; and a buffer layer on a surface of the secondary particle, wherein the secondary particle includes a nickel lithium transition metal oxide represented by Formula 1, and the buffer layer includes a metal oxide represented by Formula 2,

Li.sub.aNi.sub.1-bM.sub.bO.sub.2  Formula 1

Li.sub.xA.sub.y-1E.sub.y2O.sub.z  Formula 2

A lithium ion conductor includes a compound of Formula 1:
Li.sub.7-a*α-(b-4)*β-xM.sup.a.sub.αLa.sub.3Zr.sub.2-βM.sup.b.sub.βO.sub.12-x-δX.sub.xN.sub.δ  Formula 1 wherein in Formula 1, M.sup.a is a cationic element having a valence of a, M.sup.b is a cationic element having a valence of b, and X is an anion having a valence of −1, wherein, when M.sup.a comprises H, 0≤α≤5, otherwise 0≤α≤0.75, and wherein 0≤β≤1.5, 0≤x≤1.5, (a*α+(b−4)β+x)>0, and 0<δ≤6.

An anode for an electrochemical cell comprises a lithium metal or lithium metal alloy, and a polymer coating deposited on the lithium metal or lithium metal alloy. The polymer coating is doped with lithium ions and comprises a polyisocyanurate material. The polyisocyanurate material contains ether- and/or silicone-containing further groups. The ether-containing group is a polyether, and/or wherein the silicone-containing group is a siloxane group.

Electrochemical cells comprising electrodes comprising lithium (e.g., in the form of a solid solution with non-lithium metals), from which in situ current collectors may be formed, are generally described.