• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.34 no.12
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• pp.1805-1810
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• 2010

We present a simple, cost-effective, and fast fabrication process for three-dimensional (3D) microstructures; this process is based on multi-step electrochemical etching of metal foils which facilitates the mass production of 3D microstructures. Compared to electroplating, this process maintains uniform and well-controlled material properties of the microstructure. In the experimental study, we perform single-step electrochemical etching of aluminum foils for the fabrication of 2D cantilever arrays. In the single-step etching, the depth etch rate and bias etch rate are measured as $1.50{\pm}0.10 {\mu}m/min$ and $0.77{\pm}0.03 {\mu}m/min$, respectively. Using the results of single-step etching, we perform two-step electrochemical etching for 3D microstructures with probe tips on cantilevers. The errors in height and lateral fabrication in the case of the fabricated structures are $15.5{\pm}5.8% $ and $3.3{\pm}0.9%$, respectively; the surface roughness is $37.4{\pm}9.6nm$.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.157-162
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• 2011

We report a simple route for synthesizing multi-dimensional structured silicon anode materials from commercially available bulk silicon powders via metal-assisted chemical etching process. In the first step, silver catalyst was deposited onto the surface of bulk silicon via a galvanic displacement reaction. Next, the silver-decorated silicon particles were chemically etched in a mixture of hydrofluoric acid and hydrogen peroxide to make multi-dimensional silicon consisting of one-dimensional silicon nanowires and micro-scale silicon cores. As-synthesized silicon particles were coated with a carbon via thermal decomposition of acetylene gas. The carbon-coated multi-dimensional silicon anodes exhibited excellent electrochemical properties, including a high specific capacity (1800 mAh/g), a stable cycling retention (cycling retention of 89% after 20 cycles), and a high rate capability (71% at 3 C rate, compared to 0.1 C rate). This process is a simple and mass-productive (yield of 40-50%), thus opens up an effective route to make a high-performance silicon anode materials for lithiumion batteries.