Highly Reversible Lithium Storage in Porous SnO 2 Nanotubes with Coaxially Grown Carbon Nanotube Overlayers

The preparation of SnO2 nanotubes with coaxially grown carbon nanotube overlayers with good conformal control of shape and size is reported. The SnO2-core/carbon-shell nanotubes (see Figure) are excellent reversible lithium-ion storage compounds combining the best features of carbon (for cyclability) and SnO2 (for capacity). These structures deliver high specific capacity (∼ 540–600 mA h g–1) and good cyclability (0.0375% capacity loss per cycle).