Structural and electrochemical characterization of mesoporous thin films of Nb2xV2-2xO5 upon lithium intercalation

Nb2xV2 - 2xO5 (0 <= x <= 1) powders were prepared by a synthetic route based on the inorganic polymerization of alkoxy-choride precursors and characterized by a combination of X-ray diffraction V-51 and Nb-93 NMR and Raman spectroscopy. Amorphous mesoporous thin films of similar compositions were successfully prepared by a modified Evaporation Induced Self Assembly method using polystyrene-b-polyethyleneoxide diblock copolymer as structuring agent. The electrochemical properties of the mesoporous films upon lithium insertion-deinsertion are investigated by cyclic voltammetry. This study highlights the advantages of such nanoarchitecture in terms of increased capacity to insert lithium. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.