One‐Step Synthesis of Si–Graphene Heterostructures via in‐Flight Gas‐Phase Mixing for High‐Capacity Silicon‐Rich Anodes
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The deliberate assembly of heterostructures has emerged as a powerful strategy for electrochemical energy storage, where integration of complementary components enables synergistic performance gains. Moving beyond serial production of individual components and their subsequent liquid phase assembly, we report a one-step, continuous gas-phase synthesis of high-purity silicon/few-layer graphene (Si–FLG) heterostructures by coupling microwave-plasma and hot-wall reactors. This in-flight assembly yields exceptionally pure amorphous Si uniformly integrated within conductive FLG, eliminating liquid-phase processing. Electrochemical performance exhibits a non-monotonic dependence of performance on FLG content: capacity and cycle life maximize at an intermediate 15 wt.% FLG, attributed to a percolated, strain-buffering FLG network that preserves electrical contact while minimizing inactive mass. The optimized heterostructure delivers specific capacities of ~ 2800 mAh g -1 Si + FLG (0.05 C) and ~ 1400 mAh g -1 Si + FLG after 100 cycles at 1 C, outperforming other Si/graphene systems reported in the literature under similar conditions. These results highlight gas-phase self-assembly as a scalable route to integrate 0D/2D nanostructures into high-capacity, long-life Li-ion anodes and establish a new performance benchmark for low-carbon-fraction Si/graphene composites.
Source: Energy & environment materials
DOI: 10.1002/eem2.70333
Institutions: University of Waterloo, University of Duisburg-Essen
Language: English
Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,000
OpenAlex ID: W4416716235