Glossary
319
Theoretical capacity of a battery – The theoretical capacity of a battery is the electric
charge that a fully charged battery can deliver in a single discharge cycle. It
is expressed in A h.
Thermodynamic efficiency – The thermodynamic efficiency of a system characterizes the ratio between the real efficiency (i.e., measured) and the maximum
theoretical efficiency calculated from thermodynamic quantities. The thermodynamic efficiency of any real system is less than unity because of the
irreversible and entropic character of all real transformations.
Transport number – The transport number of charge species i gives the contribution
of this species to the total electrical conductivity of a given phase.
Unit cell – The smallest volume of a crystal that preserves the geometric, physical,
and chemical properties of the crystal. It gives in particular information on
the spatial arrangement of atoms in the crystal. The entire crystal consists of
periodic reproductions of the unit cell.
Vacancy – Structure defect denoting an empty crystallographic site in an ionic
crystal. It is generally represented by the letter V.
Warburg diffusion impedance – An electrochemical impedance that describes the
behavior of an electrode whose current is limited by diffusion phenomena.