title: Lithium ion battery peformance of silicon nanowires with carbon skin.
abstract: Silicon (Si) nanomaterials have emerged as a leading candidate for next generation lithium-ion battery anodes. However, the low electrical conductivity of Si requires the use of conductive additives in the anode film. Here we report a solution-based synthesis of Si nanowires with a conductive carbon skin. Without any conductive additive, the Si nanowire electrodes exhibited capacities of over 2000 mA h g(-1) for 100 cycles when cycled at C/10 and over 1200 mA h g(-1) when cycled more rapidly at 1C against Li metal. In situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observation reveals that the carbon skin performs dual roles: it speeds lithiation of the Si nanowires significantly, while also constraining the final volume expansion. The present work sheds light on ways to optimize lithium battery performance by smartly tailoring the nanostructure of composition of materials based on silicon and carbon.
authors: Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Materials Institute, Center for Nano- and Molecular Science and Technology, The University of Texas at Austin , Austin, Texas 78712-1062, United States.
authors: Timothy D
authors: TD
authors: Bogart
authors: Daichi
authors: D
authors: Oka
authors: Xiaotang
authors: X
authors: Lu
authors: Meng
authors: M
authors: Gu
authors: Chongmin
authors: C
authors: Wang
authors: Brian A
authors: BA
authors: Korgel