Synthesis of Hierarchical Sb₂MoO₆ Architectures and Their Electrochemical Behaviors as Anode Materials for Li-Ion Batteries

We report a facile microwave-hydrothermal synthesis of hierarchical Sb₂MoO₆ architectures assembled from single-crystalline nanobelts, which are first demonstrated as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with superior electrochemical properties. Sb₂MoO₆ delivers a high initial reversible capacity of ∼1140 mA h/g at 200 mA/g with large initial Coulombic efficiency of ∼89%, and a reversible capacity of ∼878 mA h/g after 100 cycles at 200 mA/g. As a new anode, the electrochemical behaviors are investigated through ex situ TEM and XPS measurements, revealing that the superior electrochemical performance is attributed to the novel hierarchical structures and the synergistic interaction between both the active Sb- and Mo-species, in which the in situ generated Li₂O-MoO_x serves as matrix and efficiently buffers the volume changes of the Li-Sb alloying-dealloying upon cycling.