Issue 25, 2017

Geometric design of micron-sized crystalline silicon anodes through in situ observation of deformation and fracture behaviors

Abstract

Large anisotropic volume expansion during lithiation leads to the electrochemical performance degradation and premature fracture of micro-sized silicon electrodes in lithium-ion batteries, which prohibits its practical applications. To date, the failure mechanism of micron-size silicon electrodes has not been fully comprehended due to the lack of convincing experiments. For good understanding of lithiation/delithiation processes in the silicon anodes, in the present contribution, in situ observation of anisotropic volume expansion, crack initiation, penetration, deflection and delamination at the amorphous/crystalline silicon interface has been reported. The observation suggests that novel hollow and anisometric geometric electrodes have shown substantially enhanced capability in improving the fracture behaviors of the crystalline micropillar electrodes, implying that geometric design greatly impacts the strain alleviation and reversible volume change. Due to more favorable mechanical reliability, the anisometric geometric silicon electrode is expected to present essentially enhanced electrochemical performance and structural stability, which promises a novel strategy of designing Li-ion battery electrodes from a geometric perspective.

Graphical abstract: Geometric design of micron-sized crystalline silicon anodes through in situ observation of deformation and fracture behaviors

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
22 Mar 2017
Accepted
24 Apr 2017
First published
24 Apr 2017

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017,5, 12793-12802

Geometric design of micron-sized crystalline silicon anodes through in situ observation of deformation and fracture behaviors

X. Zhang, W. Song, Z. Liu, H. Chen, T. Li, Y. Wei and D. Fang, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017, 5, 12793 DOI: 10.1039/C7TA02527K

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements