Inverse Opal‐Structured Sn and Sn/Ge Films from Soluble Zintl Clusters as Precursors

Abstract

Tin and mixed tin/germanium thin films hold great potential for a variety of different applications such as anodes for lithium ion batteries or optical components in new LED developments. While the physical and chemical properties of these materials are promising, the fabrication of nanostructures with tunable composition and electronic properties is eminently important to overcome several problems in application. In this work we report on the preparation and characterization of inverse opal-structured Sn and Sn/Ge thin films with a pore size of 200 nm on a wide variety of substrates obtained by a simple, upscalable wet-chemical synthetic route involving soluble [Sn 9 ] 4À , [Ge 9 ] 4À and mixed Sn/Ge Zintl clusters. The resulting honeycomb structures are characterized by SEM, EDX, XPS, and Raman spectroscopy. Their porous structure and tuneable composition makes them attractive candidates for electrochemical applications such as anode materials.

Toluene‐Mediated Morphology Tuning of Diblock Copolymer‐Templated Porous Si/Ge/K/C Thin Films for Li‐Ion Batteries

“…[ 29,30 ] Mixed C/Si/Ge and Ge/Sn films have been recently reported as materials for energy storage, but their potential has remained largely unexplored so far. [ 14,31 ]…”

“…[29,30] Mixed C/Si/Ge and Ge/Sn films have been recently reported as materials for energy storage, but their potential has remained largely unexplored so far. [14,31] Within this work, we present a novel synthesis route for porous mixed Si/Ge/K/C thin films. A sol-gel synthesis with the amphiphilic diblock copolymer poly(styrene 60 -b-ethylene oxide 36 ) (PS 60 -b-PEO 36 ) is used to template the dissolved Zintl phase K 12 Si 12 Ge 5 to gain mesoporous hybrid thin films.…”