Terminal hollowed Fe2O3@SnO2 heterojunction nanorods anode materials with enhanced performance for lithium-ion battery

Abstract By the simply mediated concentration of Na 2 SnO 3 and the solvothermal reaction time, a novel terminal hollowed Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 (TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 ) heterojunction nanorods are synthesized by the inside-out ostwald ripening of SnO 2 nanoparticles. For comparison, olive-like Fe 2 O 3 nanorods covered with SnO 2 nanoparticles core-shell heterogeneous composites (Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 ) are also synthesized by a facile hydrothermal treatment method. The structure and morphology of the TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 are investigated by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is found that the shells with 20–25 nm thickness of TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 are composed of tetragonal SnO 2 particles (with an average diameter 10 nm), and the core of TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 are formed of the corroded Fe 2 O 3 nanorods with 100 nm length and 50 nm widths. The formation mechanism of TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 has also been studied on the basis of investigation of the concentration of Na 2 SnO 3 and the solvothermal reaction time. By comparison with single Fe 2 O 3 nanorods and Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 , the TH-Fe 2 O 3 @SnO 2 exhibits a higher reversible specific capacity of 570.7 mAh g −1 at the current density of 200 mA g −1 after 100 cycles. The unique terminal hollowed structure and synergetic effect of Fe 2 O 3 and SnO 2 can benefit to enhance the Li storage performance and are responsible for the enhanced electrochemical performances.