In this work, we study the physico-chemistry and electrochemistry of lithium ferrite synthesized by solid-state reaction. Characterization included X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), Raman scattering (RS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and SQUID magnetometry. XRD peaks gradually sharpen with increasing firing temperature; all the diffraction peaks can be indexed to the cubic alpha-LiFeO2 phase (Fm3m space group) with the refined cell parameter a = 4.155 angstrom. RS and FTIR spectra show the vibrational modes due to covalent Fe-O bonds and the Li-cage mode at low-frequency. The electrochemical properties of Li/LiFeO2 are revisited along with the post-mortem analysis of the positive electrode material using XRD and Raman experiments. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.