Electrochemical properties of a full cell of lithium iron phosphate cathode using thin amorphous silicon anode

•LiFePO4/C as a cathode material is prepared by a mechanical activation method.•Silicon anode material is prepared by vertical deposition technique.•A LiFePO4/Si full cell is assembled to give good cycle performance.

Carbon-coated lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4/C) with uniform carbon coating was synthesized by a mechanical activation method. Silicon negative electrode material was obtained in the form of thin films of amorphous silicon on a Cu foil substrate by vertical deposition technique. The electrochemical performance of the full cell, LiFePO4/C–Si, was tested with 1 M LiPF6 in EC/DMC at 0.5 and 1 C-rates. The cell exhibited an initial discharge capacity of 143.9 mAh g− 1 at 0.5 C-rate at room temperature. A reasonably good cycling performance under a high current density of 1 C-rate could be obtained with the full cell.