SnS2 Hollow Spheres: Template‐Free Synthesis and Growth Mechanism

Abstract

Recent advances in 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have led to a variety of promising technologies for nanoelectronics, photonics, sensing, energy storage, and optoelectronics. Among these dichalcogenides, tin sulfide (SnS2) has received great attention due to its high optical absorption coefficient, high theoretical capacitance, high natural abundance of precursor chemicals, and minimal impact of these on the environment (green chemistry). It is crucial to obtain materials with varied morphologies because the chemical and physical properties are dependent on the morphology. The controlled synthesis of SnS2 with a specific morphology, a hollow sphere, is of significant interest. Herein, a facile, template‐free, one‐step solvothermal method to prepare SnS2 spheres with a hollow structure is demonstrated. The size of the SnS2 hollow spheres is uniform, at 2 μm in diameter, and the walls of the sphere are only 300 nm thick. The hollow structure forms due to the different specific surface energies of the SnS2 sheets and the fluorine‐doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate. Furthermore, the possible growth mechanism of these SnS2 hollow spheres is proposed, which may be applied to other 2D TMD systems.