Nanoforest: polyaniline nanotubes modified with carbon nano-onions as a nanocomposite material for easy-to-miniaturize high-performance solid-state supercapacitors.

This article describes a facile low-cost synthesis of polyaniline nanotube (PANINT)–carbon nano-onion (CNO) composites for solid-state supercapacitors. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analyses indicate a uniform and ordered composition for the conducting polymer nanotubes immobilized on a thin gold film. The obtained nanocomposites exhibit a brush-like architecture with a specific capacitance of 946 F g−1 at a scan rate of 1 mV s−1. In addition, the nanocomposites offer high conductivity and a porous and well-developed surface area. The PANINT–CNO nanocomposites were tested as electrodes with high potential and long-term stability for use in easy-to-miniaturize high-performance supercapacitor devices