Abstract: A metal foil machining roller of the present invention is a metal foil machining roller in which a plurality of recessed portions are formed on a circumferential surface of the roller, wherein at least a surface layer portion contains a metal material with a Rockwell hardness in A scale of HRA 81.2 to 90.0 and a transverse rupture strength of 3 GPa to 6 GPa. By pressure-molding a metal foil by using the metal foil machining roller, protrusion portions of an approximately uniform shape with dimensions of several microns to several tens of microns can be formed efficiently on a surface of the metal foil on an industrial scale.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery, including: an active material layer capable of electrochemically absorbing and desorbing at least Li; and a current collector sheet that supports the active material layer thereon and that does not react with Li, wherein the active material layer includes a plurality of deposited films or sintered films supported on a surface of the current collector sheet, and each of the deposited films or sintered films is provided with at least one groove formed in a side surface thereof, the groove extending from a top surface side towards the current collector sheet side thereof. It is preferable that the plurality of deposited films or sintered films are arranged in a grid configuration, a staggered grid configuration or a honeycomb configuration on a surface of the current collector sheet.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a lithium secondary battery and a lithium secondary battery including the negative electrode. The negative electrode includes a sheet-like current collector and an active material layer being carried thereon and including silicon atom. The active material layer includes a plurality of columnar particles, and in each columnar particle, at least a portion forming the columnar particle is grown to tilt with respect to the direction normal to the current collector. In the thickness direction of the active material layer, porosity Pc of the current collector side lower half of the active material layer and porosity Ps of the surface side upper half of the active material layer satisfy Pc<Ps.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a lithium ion secondary battery including a current collector and an active material layer carried on the current collector, wherein the active material layer includes an active material and no binder, the active material contains silicon and nitrogen, and the active material layer has a larger nitrogen ratio on a side of a first face which is in contact with the current collector than on a side of a second face which is not in contact with the current collector.

Abstract: A method for producing a silicon oxide including the steps of supplying silicon atoms onto a substrate through an oxygen atmosphere to form a silicon oxide layer on the substrate, and separating the silicon oxide layer from the substrate and pulverizing the separated silicon oxide layer to obtain silicon oxide containing silicon and oxygen in predetermined proportions, and a negative electrode active material obtained by the production method.

Abstract: This invention provides a negative electrode and a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery including the negative electrode. The negative electrode includes a Li-absorbing element as a negative electrode active material, is free from deformation, separation of the negative electrode active material layer from the negative electrode current collector, and deposition of lithium on the negative electrode current collector, and is excellent in cycle characteristic, large-current discharge characteristic, and low-temperature discharge characteristic. The negative electrode of this invention includes: a current collector having depressions and protrusions on a surface in the thickness direction thereof; and a negative electrode active material layer that includes a plurality of columns containing a negative electrode active material that absorbs and releases lithium ions, the columns being grown outwardly from the surface of the current collector.

Abstract: The invention relates to a battery current collector including a metal foil for carrying at least a positive electrode active material or a negative electrode active material. At least one side of the metal foil has a compressed base plane and non-compressed protrusions arranged at a predetermined interval, and the non-compressed protrusions are formed at the same time as formation of the base plane. The surface roughness of the base plane is different from the surface roughness of the protrusions, and the surface roughness of the base plane is preferably an arithmetic mean roughness of 0.8 ?m or less.

Abstract: A positive electrode active material for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery of this invention includes: a lithium nickel composite oxide containing lithium, nickel, and at least one metal element other than lithium and nickel; and a layer containing lithium carbonate, aluminum hydroxide, and aluminum oxide, the layer being carried on the surface of the lithium nickel composite oxide. The lithium nickel composite oxide is composed such that the ratio of the nickel to the total of the nickel and the at least one metal element is 30 mol % or more. The layer is composed such that the amount of the lithium carbonate is 0.5 to 5 mol per 100 mol of the lithium nickel composite oxide. The total of aluminum atoms contained in the aluminum hydroxide and the aluminum oxide is 0.5 to 5 mol per 100 mol of the lithium nickel composite oxide.

Abstract: The negative electrode for a lithium secondary battery includes: a current collector 11 having a plurality of bumps 11a on a surface thereof; a first active material layer formed on the current collector 11; and a second active material layer 15 disposed on the first active material layer 12 and including a plurality of active material particles 14. Each of the plurality of active material particles 14 is located on a corresponding bump 11a of the current collector 11, and each of the first active material layer 12 and the plurality of active material particles 14 has a chemical composition represented as SiOx (0<x<1).

Abstract: In a negative electrode for a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery including an active material portion capable of electrochemically absorbing and desorbing Li, a current collector carrying the active material portion, and a buffer interposed between the active material portion and the current collector, the active material portion includes at least one selected from the group consisting of a Si simple substance, a Si alloy, and a Si compound, the current collector includes Cu, and the buffer has a first layer contacting the current collector and including a group A element which is at least one selected from the group A consisting of Sn, Al, and In, and a second layer contacting the active material portion and including a group B element which is at least one selected from the group B consisting of transition metal elements other than Cu.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a current collector including a base portion with a flat face, primary projections projecting from the flat face, and secondary projections projecting from the top of the primary projections. The present invention also relates to a current collector including a base portion with a flat face and primary projections projecting from the flat face, wherein the roughening rate of the top of the primary projections is 3 to 20. By using such a current collector, separation of the active material from the current collector can be inhibited when using an active material that has a high capacity but undergoes a large expansion at the time of lithium ion absorption.

Abstract: An electrode capable of effectively dispersing or relieving the stress generated in association with expansion and contraction of an active material is provided. The electrode is produced by forming an active material layer on a predetermined current collector. This current collector includes a base and a plurality of projections formed so as to extend outwardly from a surface of the base. The cross section of the projections in a thickness direction of the current collector has a tapered shape in which a width in a direction parallel to the surface of the base narrows from the surface of the base along an extending direction of the projections.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a lithium secondary battery of the present invention includes a current collector and a negative electrode active material layer carried on the current collector. The negative electrode active material layer includes a plurality of columnar particles. The current collector has a surface including a depression and a plurality of projected regions defined by the depression. The projected regions carry the columnar particles. Further, the present invention relates to a lithium secondary battery using the foregoing negative electrode. According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a high-capacity negative electrode excellent mainly in cycle characteristics for a lithium secondary battery, and a lithium secondary battery including the same.

Abstract: In a laser processing mask, apertures formed thereon as laser light passing apertures are shaped so that a plurality of protrusions extend radially from the center of each of the apertures to the peripheral portion thereof. By using this laser processing mask, a recess pattern with dimensions of several micrometers to several tens of micrometers and high dimensional precision and shape precision can be formed on the surface of a workpiece made of, for example, a metal material by laser processing.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a lithium ion secondary battery including a current collector and an active material layer carried on the current collector, wherein the active material layer includes an active material represented by the general formula: LiaSiOx where 0.5?a?x?1.1 and 0.2?x?1.2; and the active material is obtained by vapor-depositing lithium on a layer including an active material precursor containing silicon and oxygen to cause reaction between the active material precursor and the lithium.

Abstract: A current collector including a substrate, a plurality of projections, and a chipped portion is provided. The substrate is a metal sheet. The projections are formed on the surface of the substrate. The chipped portion is an aggregate of two or more, preferably 2 to 100 of minute projections. The minute projections are formed on the substrate surface, and are the protrusions having the height of below 35% of the average height of the projections. By forming an electrode active material layer on the face of the current collector where the projections are formed to make an electrode, the detachment of the electrode active material layer, and the spread of the detachment are significantly curbed. By using this electrode, a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery which have high battery capacity and energy density, excellent charge and discharge cycle characteristics, and which is capable of keeping a high-output stably for a long period of time can be obtained.

Abstract: A negative electrode for a secondary battery includes a separator; a negative electrode active material layer which is fixed to the separator and can store and emit lithium ions; and a current collector layer formed on the side of the separator opposite to the negative electrode active material layer. The negative electrode active material layer contains at least one selected from the group consisting of silicon, silicon alloys, compounds containing silicon and oxygen, compounds containing silicon and nitrogen, compounds containing silicon and fluorine, tin, tin alloys, compounds containing tin and oxygen, compounds containing tin and nitrogen, and compounds containing tin and fluorine.

Abstract: A negative electrode including a negative electrode current collector, first protrusions on a surface of the negative electrode current collector, a separation-stopping area on at least a part of a surface of each first protrusion, and a negative electrode active material layer including a negative electrode active material and formed on at least a top face of the first protrusion. This structure suppresses the separation of the negative electrode active material layer from the negative electrode current collector, the degradation of the current collecting ability, and the deformation of the negative electrode itself. A lithium ion secondary battery including this negative electrode has a high battery capacity, a high energy density, and an excellent charge/discharge cycle characteristic, and is capable of stably maintaining a high power over an extended period of time.

Abstract: A positive electrode active material, which gives a non-aqueous electrolyte secondary battery capable of high input/output where resistance due to a battery reaction in a low temperature environment is suppressed, is produced by a method comprising: (a)providing a nickel hydroxide which is represented by the general formula Ni1?(x+y)CoxMy(OH)2, (b)heating the nickel hydroxide at a temperature not lower than 600° C. and not higher than 1000° C. to produce a nickel oxide which is represented by the general formula Ni1?(x+y)CoxMyO; and (c)mixing the nickel oxide and a lithium compound to obtain a mixture and heating the mixture at a temperature not lower than 700° C. and not higher than 850° C. to produce a lithium-containing composite oxide which is represented by the general formula LiNi1?(x+y)CoxMyO2, where 0.1?x?0.35 and 0.03?y?0.2 are satisfied and M is at least one selected from the group consisting of Al, Ti and Sn.

Abstract: A composite particle for an electrode including an active material particle, carbon nanofibers bonded to the surface of the active material particle, and a catalyst element for promoting the growth of the carbon nanofibers, wherein the active material particle includes an electrochemically active phase. As the catalyst element, for example, Au, Ag, Pt, Ru, Ir, Cu, Fe, Co, Ni, Mo, Mn and the like are used. The composite particle for an electrode may be produced, for example, by means of a method which includes: a step of preparing an active material particle including a catalyst element for promoting the growth of carbon nanofibers at least in the surface layer of the active material particle; and a step of growing carbon nanofibers on the surface of the active material particle in an atmosphere including a raw material gas.