A hollow \({\hbox {Fe}}_{3} {\hbox {O}}_{4}\)-based nanocomposite anode for lithium-ion batteries with outstanding cycling performance

The fabrication of hybrid electrodes with conversion-type electrode materials has drawn growing interest in improving the capacity performance of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) for many high-energy applications. However, as a typical conversion-type electrode material, \({\hbox {Fe}}_{3}{\hbox {O}}_{4}\) is usually restricted by large amount of volume change during repeated lithiation/delithiation course, which dramatically hinders the cycling stability of the constructed LIBs. We design a hybrid electrode of \({\hbox {Fe}}_{3}{\hbox {O}}_{4}\) nanospheres with a hollow structure wrapped by \({\hbox {MnO}}_{2}\) nanosheets (H-Fe\(_{3}{\hbox {O}}_{4}/{\hbox {MnO}}_{2} \, \hbox {NSs}\) nanospheres). As a result of the synergetic effect of a high-capacity material coating and a robust hollow core, the H-Fe\(_{3}{\hbox {O}}_{4}/{\hbox {MnO}}_{2} \, \hbox {NS}\) hybrid electrode delivers reversible capacity as high as \(590 \, {\hbox {mAh g}}^{-1}\) at a current rate of 0.1 C and maintains 92% of the initial reversible capacity after 1000 cycles at 1 C.