One-step synthesis of Ni-doped SnO2 nanospheres with enhanced lithium ion storage performance

In our work, Ni-doped SnO2 nanospheres have been synthesized via a one-step hydrothermal method using glucose as the soft template. Their structure and physicochemical properties were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), a transmission electron microscope (TEM), a field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and electrochemical methods. Compared with the pristine SnO2, appropriate Ni-doped SnO2 nanospheres showed much better rate capability and excellent cycling performance. In particular, the sample with 5 mol% Ni showed a high initial reversible capacity of 1267 mA h g(-1) at a charge-discharge rate of 0.2 C, and a stable reversible capacity of 674.8 mA h g(-1) after 35 cycles. Nickel doping could accommodate the huge volume expansion and avoid the agglomeration of nanoparticles. Thus, the electrochemistry performance was significantly improved.