Nanoporous germanium prepared by a mechanochemical reaction with enhanced lithium storage properties

Abstract

The cost-effective and facile fabrication of nanostructured germanium for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) remains a grand challenge. Herein, nanoporous Z–Ge was generated via a facile two-step mechanochemical-etching reaction with Mg₂Ge and ZnCl₂. The prepared nanoporous Ge nanoparticles, as the anode for Li–Ge half cells, showed superior LIB performance, in terms of a high capacity, good rate capability, and good long-term stability of 700 cycles. Significantly, the mechanochemical reaction was extended to produce other nanoporous Ge or Si materials such as A–Ge, Z–Si, and A–Si via the mechanochemical reaction between Mg₂Ge and AlCl₃, Mg₂Si and ZnCl₂, and Mg₂Si and AlCl₃.