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The lithium-ion battery

M. Stanley WhittinghamJohn B. GoodenoughAkira YoshinoKoichi Mizushima

This page delivers no verdict; it presents claims and evidence with their sources. No theory in science is absolute. Method

For everyone

Lithium-ion batteries work by lithium ions moving back and forth between two electrodes during charging and discharging. Because they are light and can be recharged many times, they made phones, laptops and electric vehicles possible. The first commercial lithium-ion battery went on sale in 1991. Whittingham, Goodenough and Yoshino shared the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this work. The environmental and social effects of cobalt and lithium mining and recycling are important topics of debate.

For specialists

In the 1970s Whittingham developed a battery with a titanium disulfide cathode and a lithium metal anode, but lithium metal caused safety problems. In 1980 Goodenough's group showed that lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO₂) gives a high voltage of about 4 volts. In 1985 Yoshino made a safer design by using a carbon-based anode instead of lithium metal. Sony brought a battery based on this design to market in 1991.

Views on dating

No single date is given because the date is not documented with certainty; the views of different sources are listed.

Key discoveries1976 (Whittingham), 1980 (Goodenough's group), 1985 (Yoshino)[1][2][3]

Claims

Evidence

Supporting

Experiment

Measurements with LixCoO₂ found an open-circuit voltage of about 4 volts against lithium metal and a high theoretical energy density.[2]

Challenging

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Open questions

Connections

Parent

Technology and engineering

Related

The silicon solar cellElectromagnetic induction and electricity generation

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Sources

  1. ArticleWhittingham, M. S. (1976). Electrical energy storage and intercalation chemistry. Science 192(4244), 1126–1127DOI 10.1126/science.192.4244.1126archive
  2. ArticleMizushima, K.; Jones, P. C.; Wiseman, P. J.; Goodenough, J. B. (1980). LixCoO2 (0<x<1): a new cathode material for batteries of high energy density. Materials Research Bulletin 15(6), 783–789DOI 10.1016/0025-5408(80)90012-4archive
  3. WebNobel Prize Outreach (2019). The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019nobelprize.orgarchive

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APA

Athena contributors. (2026). The lithium-ion battery. Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/lityum-iyon/

BibTeX
@misc{athena_lityum_iyon,
  title        = {The lithium-ion battery},
  author       = {{Athena contributors}},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/lityum-iyon/}},
  note         = {Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Accessed: 2026-11-01}
}

Added: September 28, 2026 · Last changed: September 28, 2026 · Page history

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