Li-rich cathode 0.55Li(2)MnO(3)center dot 0.45LiNi(1/3)Co(1/3)Mn(1/3)O(2) or written in a solid solution form Li(Li0.20Mn0.54Ni0.13Co0.13)O-2 doped with trace Ru is synthesized using a traditional co-precipitation method. The structural and morphological characterizations are carried out by employing inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry (ICP), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Ru doping causes variation of lattice constants in both Li2MnO3 and LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 components according to the results of Rietveld refinement. Electrochemical measurement shows that Li(Li0.19Mn0.54Ni0.13Co0.12Ru0.01)O-2 possesses the best performance, especially at high rate. A discharge capacity as high as 182 mAh g(-1) at a current density of 500 mA g(-1) (2 C) is achieved with a capacity fade of as low as 0.06% per cycle in the following 700 cycles. Such improvement is associated with the prominent appearance of spinel-like regions transferred from the original Li2MnO3 component in which Ru facilitates the phase transformation via enhancing the ability of Li diffusion in both Li2MnO3 and LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 components. The improvement in Li diffusion is also confirmed from the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analysis. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.