Rational design of strong chemical coupling carbon coated N-doped C@MoS2@C nanotubes for high-performance lithium storage

Abstract 1T-MoS2 is currently under intensive research, because it is a thermodynamically metastable metallic phase with a super electronic conductivity. However, the instability and finite specific capability of 1T-MoS2 hinder its application in batteries. Herein, 1T-MoS2 grown on hollow carbon fiber backbones and coated by a layer of carbon through N–S bond is synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method. N–S bond on the carbon expands the interplanar spacing of 1T-MoS2, which can accommodate more Li+ and improve electronic conductivity. Besides, the carbon coating of 1T-MoS2 grown on hollow carbon fiber backbones is a strong chemical coupling between 1T-MoS2 and the outer carbon matrix by N–S bond, providing a good stable structure on cycling. As a anode material for lithium-ion batteries, the obtained C@MoS2@C nanotubes showed a super capacity (737 mAh g−1) at high current density (2 A g−1) with long-life cycling (1200 cycles).