High performance of Ge@C nanocables as the anode for lithium ion batteries

Abstract

Germanium is a promising high-capacity anode material for lithium ion batteries. But as a huge volume variation always occurs during the charge/discharge process, it usually exhibits poor cycling stability. Herein, a low-cost Ge precursor was used for the preparation of Ge@C core–shell composited NWs by a facile and “green” synthetic route. The Ge@C nanocomposites, as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries, exhibited a high initial discharge capacity of 1648 mA h g⁻¹ and superior rate capability. In particular, Ge@C nanocomposite electrodes maintained a reversible capacity of 1086 mA h g⁻¹ after repeated cycling at a current density of 0.5 C (600 mA g⁻¹) over 200 cycles.