An apparatus includes a charging circuit configured to electrically connect to a plurality of batteries during manufacture of a set of batteries that includes the plurality of batteries. The apparatus further includes a battery bank configured to supply charge to the plurality of batteries during a formation process of each battery of the plurality of batteries and to receive the charge from the plurality of batteries during the formation process. The battery bank has at least one attribute that enables the battery bank to concurrently charge, for each plurality of batteries of the set of batteries, a particular number of batteries based on at least a threshold charging rate and to concurrently discharge, for each plurality of batteries of the set of batteries, the particular number of batteries based on at least a threshold discharging rate.

A lithium secondary battery comprising a cathode, an anode, and an elastic polymer protective layer disposed between the cathode and the anode, and a working electrolyte, wherein the elastic polymer protective layer comprises a high-elasticity polymer having a thickness from 50 nm to 100 μm, a lithium ion conductivity from 10.sup.−8 S/cm to 5×10.sup.−2 S/cm at room temperature, and a fully recoverable tensile elastic strain from 2% to 1,000% when measured without any additive or filler dispersed therein and wherein the high-elasticity polymer comprises a crosslinked polymer network of chains derived from at least one multi-functional monomer or oligomer selected from an acrylate, polyether, polyurethane acrylate, tetraethylene glycol diacrylate, triethylene glycol dimethacrylate, or di(trimethylolpropane) tetraacrylate, wherein a multi-functional monomer or oligomer comprises at least three reactive functional groups.

The manufacturing method herein disclosed includes a forming step of stacking a positive electrode sheet including a positive electrode active material layer on a positive electrode collector, a negative electrode sheet including a negative electrode active material layer on a negative electrode collector, and a separator sheet, thereby forming an electrode body; a constructing step of accommodating the electrode body in a battery case, and pouring an electrolyte into the battery case, thereby constructing a battery assembly; and a charging step of charging the battery assembly. At least any one of the positive electrode active material layer and the negative electrode active material layer has an undulating shape in a stacking direction, and a pit depth of the undulation is 10 μm or more.

Methods of forming electrochemical cells are described. In some implementations, the method can include providing an electrochemical cell having an electrode including electrochemically active material with at least about 20% to about 100% by weight of silicon. The method can include charging the electrochemical cell by providing a formation charge current at about 1 C or greater to the electrochemical cell. The method can also include discharging the electrochemical cell. In various implementations, substantially no rest of greater than about 5 minutes occurs between charging and discharging.

To improve the capacity of an all-solid-state battery, a method of manufacturing an all-solid-state battery having a cathode that contains sulfur include: performing initial charge and discharge separately at least in three cycles until a capacity of the battery reaches a design capacity, wherein a charge discharge capacity in a first cycle is at most 30% of the design capacity, and charge and discharge in a second cycle and after are performed, so that a charge discharge capacity in an n-th cycle is increased at least 1.15 times as much as a charge discharge capacity in an (n-1)-th cycle.

An apparatus includes a plurality of press plates arranged opposite each other with a cell insertion space therebetween into which a battery cell is insertable, and the plurality of press plates being movable towards each other to press a body of the battery cell, at least one gripper unit mounted on an upper edge of each press plate of the plurality of press plates, the at least one gripper unit extending to the cell insertion space, and the at least one gripper unit coming into contact with an electrode lead of the battery cell when adjacent press plates press the body of the battery cell, and at least one push bar unit coupled with the at least one gripper unit, the at least one push bar unit extending to the cell insertion space and including a push bar pressing portion to elastically press a terrace area of the battery cell.

A manufacturing method for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery includes preparing a battery assembly, and performing an initial charging on the battery assembly. In the initial charging, a differential capacity curve of the battery assembly has a first peak voltage at which a first layer is formed on the electrode body and a second peak voltage at which a second layer is formed on the electrode body. The initial charging includes forming the first layer by stopping charging for a first stop time after charging to a first specified voltage that is set between the first peak voltage and the second peak voltage, and forming a second layer with charging performed to a second specified voltage that is set higher than the second peak voltage after forming the first layer.

Various implementations of a method of forming an electrochemical cell include providing a first electrode, a second electrode, a separator between the first and second electrodes, and an electrolyte in a cell container. The first electrode can include silicon-dominant electrochemically active material. The silicon-dominant electrochemically active material can include greater than 50% silicon by weight. The method can also include exposing at least a part of the electrochemical cell to CO.sub.2, and forming a solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer on the first electrode using the CO.sub.2.

A pressing jig for removing gas generated in an activation process of a battery cell includes a plate-shaped lower plate on which the battery cell that has undergone the activation process is placed and fixed, and an upper plate that presses the battery cell placed on the lower plate from above. At least one of the upper plate or the lower plate has a structure in which n (n≥3) separated sub-plates are assembled to form a single plate, and the sub-plates independently press the battery cell. The pressing jig can suppress trapping of internal gas by sequentially pressing the battery cell.

A rechargeable lithium battery includes a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and an electrolyte including a lithium salt, wherein at least one of the positive electrode and the negative electrode includes a current collector, an electrode tab extending from the current collector, an active material layer disposed on the current collector, and a passivation film formed on at least one of the current collector and the electrode tab. The passivation film includes a material represented by Chemical Formula 1:
CuX(POF.sub.2).sub.nY.sub.2Z,  Chemical Formula 1
wherein, in Chemical Formula 1, X is a C.sub.1 to C.sub.10 alkylene group, Y is represented by Chemical Formula 2, Z is an anion group of the lithium salt, and n is 1 or 2:
NC—R.sup.1—CN, (wherein, R.sup.1 is a C.sub.1 to C.sub.10 alkylene group).  Chemical Formula 2