LiFePO4/carbon composite was synthesized at 600 degrees C for 4 h in an At atmosphere by a stearic acid assisted theological phase method using amorphous nano-FePO4 as the iron source. XRD, SEM and TEM observations show that the LiFePO4/carbon composite has good crystallinity, ultrafine and well-dispersed particles of 60-150 nm size and in situ carbon coated on the surface of LiFePO4 crystallites. The synthesized LiFePO4/carbon composite shows a high discharge capacity of 160 mAh g(-1) and 155 mAh g(-1) at rates of 0.5 C and 1 C, respectively. Even at a high current density of 30 C, the material still presents a discharge capacity of 93 mAh g(-1) and exhibits an excellent cycling performance. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.