Horizontal lithium electrodeposition on atomically polarized monolayer hexagonal boron nitride

Abstract

Abstract Both uncontrolled Li dendrite growth and corrosion are major obstacles to the practical application of Li metal batteries. Despite numerous attempts to address these challenges, effective solutions for dendrite-free reversible Li electrodeposition have remained elusive. Here, we demonstrate the horizontal Li electrodeposition on top of atomically-polarized monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). Theoretical investigations revealed that the hexagonal lattice configuration and polarity of the monolayer hBN, devoid of dangling bonds, reduced the energy barrier for the surface diffusion of Li, thus facilitating reversible in-plane Li growth. Moreover, the single-atom-thick hBN deposited on a Cu current collector (monolayer hBN/Cu) facilitated the formation of an inorganic-rich, homogeneous solid electrolyte interphase layer, which enabled the uniform Li+ flux and suppressed Li corrosion. Consequently, Li metal and anode-free full cells containing the monolayer hBN/Cu exhibited improved rate performance and cycle life. This study suggests that the monolayer hBN is a promising class of underlying seed-layer to enable dendrite- and corrosion-free, horizontal Li electrodeposition for sustainable Li metal anodes in next-generation batteries.