We present the structural and electrochemical properties of LiCoO2 and doped LiCo1-yMyO2 (M=Ni, Al, B, Mg) oxides prepared by various methods, i.e. solid-state reaction, wet chemistry and film deposition techniques. The local structure studied by resonance spectroscopy (Raman and FTIR) is reported. It is shown that synthesis procedures of LiCoO2 cathode materials greatly affect the electrochemistry and cycle life characteristics of their layered structure. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.