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Metallic 1T phase MoS2 nanosheets as supercapacitor electrode materials

Nature Nanotechnology volume 10, pages 313–318 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

Efficient intercalation of ions in layered materials forms the basis of electrochemical energy storage devices such as batteries and capacitors1,2,3,4,5,6. Recent research has focused on the exfoliation of layered materials and then restacking the two-dimensional exfoliated nanosheets to form electrodes with enhanced electrochemical response7,8,9,10,11. Here, we show that chemically exfoliated nanosheets of MoS2 containing a high concentration of the metallic 1T phase can electrochemically intercalate ions such as H+, Li+, Na+ and K+ with extraordinary efficiency and achieve capacitance values ranging from ∼400 to ∼700 F cm−3 in a variety of aqueous electrolytes. We also demonstrate that this material is suitable for high-voltage (3.5 V) operation in non-aqueous organic electrolytes, showing prime volumetric energy and power density values, coulombic efficiencies in excess of 95%, and stability over 5,000 cycles. As we show by X-ray diffraction analysis, these favourable electrochemical properties of 1T MoS2 layers are mainly a result of their hydrophilicity and high electrical conductivity, as well as the ability of the exfoliated layers to dynamically expand and intercalate the various ions.

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Figure 1: Chemically exfoliated 1T MoS2 electrodes.
Figure 2: Electrochemical characterization of 1T phase MoS2 electrodes in different electrolytes.
Figure 3: Electrochemical behaviour of 1T phase MoS2 electrodes in organic electrolytes.
Figure 4: Ex situ XRD spectra from restacked 1T phase MoS2 films.

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Acknowledgements

M.C. and D.V. acknowledge financial support from the National Science Foundation (NSF DGE 0903661) and the Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems (1128335). M.A. acknowledges support from the Turkish Ministry of Education.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Materials Science and Engineering, 607 Taylor Road, Piscataway, 08854, New Jersey, USA

    Muharrem Acerce, Damien Voiry & Manish Chhowalla

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  1. Muharrem Acerce
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  2. Damien Voiry
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  3. Manish Chhowalla
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Contributions

M.C. and M.A. conceived the idea and designed the experiments. M.A. synthesized the materials, carried out the electrochemical measurements, performed XRD analyses and assisted D.V. with XPS. D.V. assisted in materials synthesis, and performed Raman, XPS and SEM measurements. M.C. wrote the manuscript with assistance from M.A. and D.V. All authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Manish Chhowalla.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Acerce, M., Voiry, D. & Chhowalla, M. Metallic 1T phase MoS2 nanosheets as supercapacitor electrode materials. Nature Nanotech 10, 313–318 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2015.40

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