ELECTROCHEMICAL AND SOLID STATE LETTERS, v.9, no.1, pp.A34 - A38
Abstract
Tin particles that were prepared using three different capping agents, hydrobenzamide, citrate, and polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) exhibited different particle sizes. The hydrobenzamide-capped Sn had the smallest particle size (∼50 nm) and uniform distribution while the citrate and PVP-capped Sn had particle sizes of ∼100 and ∼300 nm, respectively, with severe particle aggregation. However, there was no SnO2 or SnO detected on the particle surfaces. The cycling results using coin-type half cells confirmed that the hydrobenzamide-capped Sn had the highest charge capacity of 994 mAh/g between 1.5 and 0 V and the best capacity retention. In contrast, the citrate and PVP-capped Sn showed severe capacity decay. Further analysis using cycled electrodes showed that the hydrobenzamide-capped Sn showed the least particle agglomeration and growth, compared with the others. From Fourier transform magnitude (FT) of Sn LIII-edge energy dispersive X-ray analysis spectra, these facts could be supported by the strong coordination formed as a result of chemical bonding between the nitrogen of the hydrobenzamide capping agent effectively inhibiting the particle growth during cycling.