Ultralong cycle life enabled by in situ growth of CoMo_(1-x)P/Mo heterostructure for lithium-sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries(Li-S batteries) are considered as promising new-generation electrochemical energy storage devices due to their extremely high theoretical energy density(2600 Wh kg-1) and theoretical specific capacity(1675 m Ah g^(-1)). However, numerous problems such as poor conductivity and the shuttle effect during discharge-charge process limit the practical application of lithium-sulfur batteries. In this work, porous tubular Co Mo_(1-x)P/Mo constructed by in situ growth of metal Mo was designed as the sulfur host for lithium-sulfur batteries. The introduction of Mo modulated the electronic structure of Co Mo P to improve the conductivity of cathode and facilitate the redox kinetics, as well as the Co Mo_(1-x)P/Mo heterostructure was beneficial to inhibit the shuttle effect through the interaction with lithium polysulfides, which improved cycling stability. As a result, Co Mo_(1-x)P/Mo/S cathode had a low-capacity decay rate of only 0.029% per cycle after 2000 cycles at 0.5 C. This work provided a new perspective for the further design of high-performance lithium-sulfur battery cathode materials.