On-chip 3D interdigital micro-supercapacitors with ultrahigh areal energy density

Abstract

The great development of lightweight and portable smart electronic devices has significantly stimulated the interests in exploring and developing miniaturized energy storage systems. High-performance micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) with three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures show a great potential to improve energy storage capability, and these types of MSCs are regarded as ideal stand-alone power sources for smart microelectronics. Here, Cu0.56Co2.44O4@MnO2 core–shell nanoflowers and carbon nanotubes are integrated into a 3D hybrid asymmetric MSC with a fast, convenient, and scalable production fashion. Due to the hierarchical structure of the 3D electrodes and active materials, the hybrid MSC exhibits an improved specific areal capacitance of 665.3 ​mF ​cm−2 at 3.2 ​mA ​cm−2 and an excellent cycling performance of 89.8% retention after 8000 cycles. The MSC also shows an ultrahigh energy density of 182.3 ​μW ​h ​cm−2, which is higher than almost all the previously reported energy density values of on-chip interdigital-electrode MSCs. The efficient fabrication methodology of both the materials and the device demonstrated in this work show great potential in developing high-performance 3D MSCs.