In situ synthesis of carbon fiber-supported SiOx as anode materials for lithium ion batteries

The carbon fiber-supported SiOx (CF-SiOx) composites are in situ fabricated using a facile two-step method and evaluated as anodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The CF-SiOx anodes exhibit a reversible capacity of 1100 mA h g(-1) at 50 mA g(-1) after a high current charge-discharge cycling test with a capacity retention of 80% (compared with the first 5 cycles). This superior performance of the CF-SiOx are due to the modification of SiOx with the profiled carbon fibers, which effectively construct a continuous conducting network and thus enhance the electrochemical activity of SiOx. The profiled carbon fibers have numerous surface grooves to provide high contact area for rapid lithium-ion transport and enough inter-fiber space for the accommodation of large SiOx volume changes on lithium insertion and extraction.