Multiple li positions inside oxygen octahedra in lithiated TiO2 anatase

Intercalation of U in TiO2 anatase results in a phase separation in a Li-poor and a Li-rich phase. The local lithium configuration in the coexisting crystallographic phases is resolved by detailed analysis of neutron diffraction data. In each of the phases, two distinct positions within the octahedral interstices are found, with a temperature-dependent occupancy. A combination of quasi-elastic neutron scattering and force field molecular dynamics simulations shows that Li is hopping on a picosecond time scale between the two sites in the octahedral interstices. The results also suggest a specific Li arrangement along the crystallographic a direction, albeit without long range order, It is likely that multiple discrete Li sites within a distorted oxygen octahedron occur not only in intercalated TiO2 anatase but also in other (transition metal) oxides.