Electrochemically synthesized nanoflowers to nanosphere-like nicuse₂ thin films for efficient supercapacitor application

Developing efficient electrochemically active nanostructures from Earth-abundant elements has gained significant interest in recent years. Among different transition metals, nickel and copper are abundant electrocatalysts for energy-storage applications. Nickel–copper selenide (NiCuSe₂) nanostructures were prepared on a stainless-steel mesh with a cost-effective, simple, and versatile electrodeposition method for supercapacitor applications. The change effect in the bath concentration of nickel and copper altered the structural and electrochemical properties of NiCuSe₂ electrode. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns confirmed the pure phase of ternary NiCuSe₂ thin films with a cubic crystal structure. The surface morphology of NiCuSe₂ was tuned by nickel and copper from spherical porous nanoflowers, nanoplates, nanocubes, and nanosphere-like nanostructures deposited on the stainless-steel mesh. The electrochemical performance of the electrodeposited NiCuSe₂ was investigated in alkaline 1 M KOH electrolyte. The synergetic effect of bimetallic nickel and copper with the selenide electrode showed superior specific capacity of about 42.46 mAh g⁻¹ at 10 mV s⁻¹ along with reasonable cycling stability.