Surface‐Initiated Growth of Thin Oxide Coatings for Li–Sulfur Battery Cathodes

The concept of surface-initiated growth of oxides on functionalized carbons is introduced as a method to inhibit the dissolution of polysulfide ions in Li–S battery cathode materials. MOx (M: Si, V) thin layers are homogeneously coated on nanostructured carbon–sulfur composites. The coating significantly inhibits the dissolution of polysulfides on cycling, resulting in enhanced cycle performance and coulombic efficiency of the Li–S battery.