Researchers Create Germanium Sulfide Nanoflowers for Next Generation Energy Storage
Posted on October 11, 2012
Researchers from North Carolina State University have created flower-like structures out of a germanium sulfide (GeS), a semiconductor material. The GES nanoflowers have extremely thin petals (20-30 nanometers thick) that provide a very large surface area in a small amount of space. The researchers say these structures hold promise for next-generation energy storage devices.
Dr. Linyou Cao, an assistant professor of materials science and engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper on the research, said in the announcement, "Creating these GeS nanoflowers is exciting because it gives us a huge surface area in a small amount of space. This could significantly increase the capacity of lithium-ion batteries, for instance, since the thinner structure with larger surface area can hold more lithium ions. By the same token, this GeS flower structure could lead to increased capacity for supercapacitors, which are also used for energy storage."
The nanoflowers were made by first heating GeS powder in a furnace until it begins to vaporize. The vapor is then blown into a cooler region of the furnace, where the GeS settles out of the air into a layered sheet that is just 20 to 30 nanometers thick, and up to 100 micrometers long. As additional layers are added, the sheets branch out from one another, creating the floral pattern.
The research paper is published online here in the journal ACS Nano.