In this work, a new morphological nanostructure of the CNWs@ultrathin SnO2 NSs@C composite has been successfully fabricated, realizing the integration of two-dimensional ultrathin SnO2 NSs and one-dimensional CNWs. The nanosized ultrathin SnO2 NSs (thickness of ca. 1-3 nm) are uniformly distributed between one dimension CNWs core and C shell, as confirmed by XRD, SEM, TEM and HRTEM characterizations. When tested as potential anode materials for LIBs, the as-prepared coaxial nanocable-like CNWs@ultrathin SnO2 NSs@C composite exhibits outstanding reversible capacity for lithium storage (695 mAh g(-1), after 40 cycles at 160 mA g(-1), 651 and 618 mAh g(-1), after 80 cycles at 400 and 800 mA g(-1,) respectively). This intriguing architecture, which integrates both electronic conductivity and buffering matrix design strategies, contributing to enhanced lithium storage performance. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.