Patent ID: 8071238

Claim:
An electrode composition for a lithium ion battery having the formula Si x Sn q M y where q, x, and y represent atomic percent values and (a) (q+x)>2y (b) x, y, and q are greater than 0; and (c) M is one or more metals selected from manganese, molybdenum, niobium, tungsten, tantalum, iron, copper, titanium, vanadium, chromium, nickel, cobalt, zirconium, yttrium, or combinations thereof, wherein the Si, Sn, and M elements are arranged in the form of a multi-phase microstructure comprising: (i) an amorphous phase comprising silicon; (ii) a nanocrystalline phase comprising metal silicide; and (iii) an amorphous phase comprising Sn.