Effects of Pt nanoparticle incorporation into a MoO 3 thin film, which was prepared via cosputtering of a Pt and MoO 3 target, were investigated for a cathode electrode of the rechargeable Li batteries. The incorporation of the Pt with size of ca. 1.5 nm formed a heterogeneous film morphology with nanophases of Pt and MoO 3 domains, leading to a better cyclic performance than the electrode of MoO 3 without Pt. These enhancements with Pt in the MoO 3 electrode could be ascribed to a combined effect of substantial decrease in the sheet resistance and amelioration of the mechanical stability of the film itself.High-performance rechargeable lithium batteries have been of great interest for power sources of various portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, camcorders, and notebook computers. 1 Thin-film rechargeable lithium batteries with high energy density and excellent cycling performance have also been attractive for the miniaturized power sources in smaller sized electronic devices and microelectronic mechanical systems ͑MEMS͒. [2][3][4][5] Molybdenum trioxide ͑MoO 3 ͒, which has a two-dimensional layer structure, is one of the interesting materials due to its chemical and electrochemical properties; it has been widely investigated as the electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries, 6-10 electrochromic devices, 11 supercapacitors, 12 gas sensors, 13 and catalysts. 14 However, low recharge efficiency and poor cycling performance limit the successful application of MoO 3 as a cathode material for rechargeable Li batteries.MoO 3 thin films have been prepared using various thin film growth techniques such as chemical vapor deposition ͑CVD͒, vacuum evaporation, electrochemical deposition, or sputtering method. [15][16][17] Sputtering technique provides a simple and efficient method of thin-film growth both for an undoped single-and for doped multicomponents to improve the electrochemical properties. [18][19][20][21] It was reported that a nanocomposite electrode prepared by cosputtering of Si and Sn exhibited better reversible capacity during Li insertion and extraction processes than Si alone by enhancing structural stability of the electrodes. 18 Also, cycling performance and discharge capacity could be improved by incorporating a transition metal oxide of MoO 3 on an amorphous V 2 O 5 oxide, compared to those of V 2 O 5 alone. 19 Cosputtering of vanadium with Ag affected the discharge capacity and cycling performance of V 2 O 5 from modification of the electronic property and microstructure of V 2 O 5 material. 22 In this work, we investigate the microstructure, chemical environment, and electrochemical behavior of a nanocomposite electrode composed of MoO 3 and Pt as the cathode materials for a rechargeable Li battery, in which Pt nanoparticles are embedded in the MoO 3 thin-film matrix. Transmission electron microscopy ͑TEM͒, scanning electron microscopy ͑SEM͒, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy ͑XPS͒, X-ray absorption near-edge structure ͑XANES͒, and Hall measurement were employed to characterize the p...