Structure and properties of self-organized 2$D$ and 3$D$ antimony/carbon composites

The conditions of synthesis of antimony/carbon composites by interlayer self-assembly from colloidal solutions and melts are discussed. The morphology and the structure of these composites are examined. The potential to produce composites of 2$D$ and 3$D$ morphologies is demonstrated. The 2$D$ composite has a multilayer graphene structure with submicron antimony inclusions, while the 3$D$ composite has a spheroidal shell structure with a deformed film-shell with carbon nanoinclusions. The difference in properties of these composites is demonstrated: the 2$D$ composite is conductive, while the 3$D$ composite has a nonlinear current–voltage characteristic that indicates the emergence of novel functional properties of the spheroidal antimony/carbon composite. A model of exfoliation of the layered precursor with covalent interlayer coupling is proposed. This model provides an explanation for the experimentally observed nonlinear hydrodynamic processes in the colloidal antimony solution.