Attaining improved cycling durability and engineering a dendrite-free lithium metal anode

Abstract

The development of Li metal batteries with increased lifespan and energy density is crucial for next-generation energy storage systems. To achieve this, it is necessary to control the growth of Li dendrites, which can lead to cycling performance issues and safety concerns. One approach to increase the energy density of large-scale Li metal-based batteries is to use thin Li metal anodes. However, fabricating thin Li metal anodes from natural oxide layers can be difficult. In this study, we used pure Li metal powder to fabricate thin Li metal anodes, which do not possess a natural oxide layer. This resulted in Li plating with a low overpotential on the unprotected Li metal surface. Our fabricated LiMP symmetric cell maintained stable cycling for over 170 hours at a current density of 1.0 mA cm⁻², demonstrating superior performance compared to bare Li metal foil. Furthermore, we evaluated the performance of an all-solid-state battery (ASSB) using a polymer solid electrolyte and an oxide-based solid electrolyte in the fabricated LiMP symmetric cell. At 0.1 mA cm⁻², the conventional Li symmetric cell experienced polarization after 200 hours, while the LiMP symmetric cell remained stable even after 600 hours. Taken together, these results provide new insights into the development of high-performance Li metal batteries.