Carbon is an integral part of many battery electrodes. We explored the use of semiconductor-processing techniques that involve photolithography to pattern photoresists and subsequent pyrolysis to form carbon microstructures that function as microelectrodes. In this study, we describe the status of the fabrication of carbon microelectrodes obtained by pyrolysis of photoresist. Electrochemical nanometer-scale patterning of the surface of a conducting lithium manganese oxide (LiMn(sub 2)O(sub 4)) by scanning probe microscopy (SPM) was studied. We show that a localized surface chemical change can be confined to a depth which depends on the oxide-tip voltage difference and ambient humidity. The ability to produce nanometer-size patterns of chemically modified oxide or nanometer-sized alterations of the oxide morphology is demonstrated and discussed with reference to possible mechanisms.