Design of a light-sensitive tubular MoS₂/C composite as the cathode for photo-enhanced rechargeable zinc-ion batteries

Utilizing solar energy to charge electrical energy storage devices has currently emerged as a hot and promising research direction to replace the traditional charging processes. Here, MoS₂/carbon composites with a hollow tubular structure (MoS₂/C-NTs) were developed and used as multifunctional cathodes for the assembly of photo-accelerated rechargeable zinc-ion batteries (photo-ZIBs). The good light-sensitive feature enables MoS₂/C-NTs to be capable of harvesting and simultaneously storing solar energy. Benefiting from this, photo-induced charging can be realized and, more importantly, the capacity can be boosted from 254 to 355 mA h g⁻¹ (current density of 100 mA g⁻¹) as compared to that in the dark. Moreover, the obtained photo-ZIB also demonstrates a good capacity retention of ∼74% over 200 cycles under light irradiation.