Spatially-confined electrochemical reactions are firstly realized in a highly dense nanocomposite anode for high performance lithium ion batteries. The spatially-confined lithiation–delithiation effectively avoids inter-cluster migration and perfectly retains full structural integrity. Large reversible capacity, high rate capability and superior cycling stability are achieved simultaneously. This spatially-confined lithiation–delithiation offers novel insight to enhance cycling performance of high capacity anode materials.
