Influence of the diameter distribution on the rate capability of silicon nanowires for lithium-ion batteries

International audienceFor the first time, the effect of the nanowires diameter in terms of size and distribution on electrochemical properties of SiNWs grown by VLS was investigated. The diameter size was tuned by using three different gold catalyst film thicknesses. The crucial influence of this parameter is evidenced through comparison of the charge-discharge behavior and a study of the rate capability for the three samples. The rechargeable capacity as well as the rate capability is shown to be the best when the smallest diameters (<65 nm) are used compared to larger one (<210 nm and