Effects of Na-substitution on structural and electronic properties of Li2CoSiO4 cathode material

Na-substituted dilithium orthosilicate Li2CoSiO4 was investigated by performing density functional theory calculations within the GGA+U framework. The effects of Na-substitution on the electronic structures and structural properties of Li2CoSiO4 were presented. The results show that the Na-substitution on Li sites in Li2CoSiO4 induces a lowering of the conduction bands and a narrowing of the band gap, which could be helpful for enhancing the electronic conductivity. On the other hand, the Na-substitution on the Li ions in Li2CoSiO4 leads to the expansion of interlayer space of the adjacent corrugated layers. This lattice expansion effect would benefit the Li ion diffusion.