Polyethylene oxide (PEO)/LixMoO3 nanocomposites were prepared by the direct melt method. Characterization of the nanocomposites using thermal gravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and powder X-ray diffraction shows that polymer chains intercalate inorganic host lamella and exhibit a lattice expansion along the stacking direction of 7.7 Angstrom, consistent with the lattice expansion of nanocomposites prepared by the solution method. The intercalation of the polymer chains in LixMoO3 galleries suppresses their tendency to crystallize. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.