Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon- Based Nanomaterials as alternative electrodes to graphite for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

Graphite is the material most used as an electrode in commercial lithium-ion batteries.

On the other hand, it is a material with low energy capacity, and it is considered a raw critical

material given its large volume of use. In the current energy context, we must promote the search

for alternative materials based on elements that are abundant, sustainable and that have better

performance for energy storage. We propose thin materials based on silicon, which has a storage

capacity eleven times higher than graphite. Nevertheless, due to the high-volume expansion during

lithiation, it tends to crack, limiting the life of the batteries. To solve this problem, hydrogenated

amorphous silicon has been researched, in the form of thin film and nanostructures, since, due

to its amorphous structure, porosity and high specific surface, it could better absorb changes in

volume. These thin films were grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition, and then the

nanowires were obtained by chemical etching. The compositional variations of films deposited at different

temperatures and the incorporation of dopants markedly influence the stability and longevity

of batteries. With these optimized electrodes, we achieved batteries with an initial capacity of

3800 mAhg􀀀1 and 82% capacity retention after 50 cycles