Elucidating binder-free magnetron sputtered molybdenum-tungsten-disulfide thin films for battery-supercapacitor devices

Two–dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDCs) have proven to hold prime importance in energy storage devices. Owing to the hexagonal layered structure resulting in high capacitance, MoS2 and WS2 gained more attention for battery-supercapacitor technology. In our work, WS2/MoS2 samples with different film thickness were deposited by using magnetron sputtering technique. The surface and structural morphology of WS2/MoS2 samples were analyzed via X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy. WS2/MoS2 exhibited the best performance in three electrode assembly by showing a maximum specific capacity of 306.6 C g-1. A hybrid battery-supercapacitor device was fabricated using WS2/MoS2 and activated carbon as the electrodes. The device possessed a good specific capacity with energy and power densities of 32 Wh kg− 1 and 51,00 W kg− 1, respectively. Furthermore, the b-values were computed by employing power's law that affirms the hybrid nature of device. The promising results of sputtered WS2/MoS2 make it an auspicious electrode for its application in battery-supercapacitor devices. •Different thickness of WS2/MoS2 were deposited via magnetron sputtering technique.•In three electrode assembly WS2/MoS2 exhibits the specific capacity of 306.6 C/g.•The fabricated WS2/MoS2//AC device acquired the power density of 51,00 W kg−1.•Capacitive and diffusive contributions were extracted by utilizing Dunn’s model.•The b values were computed to affirms battery-supercapacitor hybrid nature.