Carbon/ZnO Nanorod Array Electrode with Significantly Improved Lithium Storage Capability

Carbon/ZnO nanorod arrays on nickel substrate have been fabricated over a large area by the simple carbonization of preadsorbed glucose on ZnO arrays at 500 degrees C in argon gas. The uniform coating of average 6 nm carbon shell on ZnO nanorod surface is confirmed. The novel array architecture possesses both the electroactivity of carbon and the electrochemical advantages of array structure on conductive substrate. When used as anode for Li ion batteries, it displays significantly improved performance in terms of cycling stability and rate capability. The observed lithium storage ability ranges among the best reported to date for ZnOC-based anode. We believe that the novel carbon-coating route is general and can be extendable to other metal oxide nanoarray electrodes.