Nanorods to hexagonal nanosheets of CuO-doped manganese oxide nanostructures for higher electrochemical supercapacitor performance.

In this work, the extraordinary properties of CuO addition on the morphology and supercapacitive performance of MnO electrodes were demonstrated. Concisely, CuO/MnO thin films were prepared by an easy and inexpensive successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method. The prepared thin films were characterized by various sophisticated physiochemical systems. The results demonstrated formation of MnO thin films with noteworthy morphological alteration upon introduction of CuO. Furthermore, a significant effect of CuO introduction was observed on the electrocatalytic properties of the nanostructured MnO electrodes. At 3% CuO doping, the MnO electrodes displayed the maximum specific capacitance owing to formation of nanoplate-like structures. The enhanced specific capacitance attained for 3% CuO doping in the MnO electrode was 500 F/g at 5 mV/s in a 3 M KOH electrolyte. All results confirmed the plausible potential of the CuO/MnO electrode for supercapacitor applications.