Growth, characterization and electrochemical properties of hierarchical CuO nanostructures for supercapacitor applications

•Hierarchical CuO nanostructures were grown on Cu foil.•Monoclinic phase of CuO was grown.•XPS analysis revealed the presence of Cu(2p3/2) and Cu(2p1/2) on the surfaces.•Specific capacitance of 94 F/g was achieved for the CuO using cyclic voltammetry.•Impedance spectra show their pseudo capacitor applications.

In this paper, we have investigated the electrochemical properties of hierarchical CuO nanostructures for pseudo-supercapacitor device applications. Moreover, the CuO nanostructures were formed on Cu substrate by in situ crystallization process. The as-grown CuO nanostructures were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform-infra red spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and field emission-scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) analysis. The XRD and FT-IR analysis confirm the formation of monoclinic CuO nanostructures. FE-SEM analysis shows the formation of leave like hierarchical structures of CuO with high uniformity and controlled density. The electrochemical analysis such as cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy studies confirms the pseudo-capacitive behavior of the CuO nanostructures. Our experimental results suggest that CuO nanostructures will create promising applications of CuO toward pseudo-supercapacitors.

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