Tuning ultrafine manganese oxide nanowire synthesis seeded by Si particles and its superior Li storage behaviors

摘要

By using silicon nanoparticles as seeds, a team in China has made ultrafine manganese oxide (MnO) nanowires in a matrix of amorphous carbon. The properties of nanowires vary according depending on their size and shape, and hence methods are needed for controllably synthesizing nanostructures and for shrinking their dimensions. Now, Dingguo Xia and co-workers at Peking University in Beijing have used epitaxial growth to synthesize MnO nanowires with diameters in the range 5–10 nanometres embedded in a carbon matrix. They characterized the growth mechanism and properties of this nanocomposite and found that it is promising as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries. In particular, it exhibited excellent charge transfer kinetics and electrochemical performance. The scientists consider that the synthesis strategy may be applicable for making nanostructures of other transition-metal oxides.