A high capacity, template-electroplated Ni–Sn intermetallic electrode for lithium ion battery

In this paper we describe a Ni–Sn intermetallic material obtained via template electroplating synthesis. The structure and the morphology of this material are investigated by X ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analyses. We demonstrate that Ni–Sn behaves as a sub-micrometric electrode showing a favourable response when cycled in a lithium cell. The results here reported suggest that the template electroplating is a promising synthetic approach that can lead to an optimized structure and morphology of the Ni–Sn electrode, such as to confer it a role of a high capacity anode in advanced lithium ion batteries.

► In this paper we describe a Ni–Sn intermetallic electrode synthesized by template electroplating. ► The electrode is characterized by sub-micron morphology, and metastable phase. ► The template Ni–Sn electrode has an improved electrochemical behaviour in lithium cell. ► The specific capacity is ranging between 400 mAh g−1 and 600 mAh g−1. ► The electrode is proposed as alternative anode for lithium ion battery.