Three-Dimensional Hierarchically Porous MoS2 Foam as High-Rate and Stable Lithium-Ion Battery Anode

Architected materials that actively respond to external stimuli hold tantalizing prospects for applications in energy storage, wearable electronics, and bioengineering. Molybdenum disulfide, an excellent two-dimensional building block, is a promising candidate for lithium-ion battery anode. However, the stacked and brittle two-dimensional layered structure limits its rate capability and electrochemical stability. Here we report the dewetting-induced manufacturing of two-dimensional molybdenum disulfide nanosheets into a three-dimensional foam with a structural hierarchy across seven orders of magnitude. Our molybdenum disulfide foam provides an interpenetrating network for efficient charge transport, rapid ion diffusion, and mechanically resilient and chemically stable support for electrochemical reactions. These features induce a pseudocapacitive energy storage mechanism involving molybdenum redox reactions, confirmed by in-situ X-ray absorption near edge structure. The MoS₂Foam electrode exhibits extremely high reversible capacities of 1575, 1550, 1515, 1431, 1268 and 1111 mA h g⁻¹ at current densities of 0.2, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 5.0, 10 A g⁻¹. Furthermore,<b> </b>MoS₂ Foam remains electronically functional and shows the specific capacity of 1000 mA h g⁻¹ and 700 mA h g⁻¹ even when measured at high current densities of 5 A g⁻¹ and10 A g⁻¹ after 1,000 cycles. The extraordinary electrochemical performance of molybdenum disulfide foam outperforms most reported molybdenum disulfide-based lithium-ion battery anodes and state-of-the-art materials. This work opens promising inroads for various applications where special properties arise from hierarchical architecture.