title: Polymer nanofiber-guided uniform lithium deposition for battery electrodes.
abstract: Lithium metal is one of the most promising candidates as an anode material for next-generation energy storage systems due to its highest specific capacity (3860 mAh/g) and lowest redox potential of all. The uncontrolled lithium dendrite growth that causes a poor cycling performance and serious safety hazards, however, presents a significant challenge for the realization of lithium metal-based batteries. Here, we demonstrate a novel electrode design by placing a three-dimensional (3D) oxidized polyacrylonitrile nanofiber network on top of the current collector. The polymer fiber with polar surface functional groups could guide the lithium ions to form uniform lithium metal deposits confined on the polymer fiber surface and in the 3D polymer layer. We showed stable cycling of lithium metal anode with an average Coulombic efficiency of 97.4% over 120 cycles in ether-based electrolyte at a current density of 3 mA/cm(2) for a total of 1 mAh/cm(2) of lithium.
authors.forename: Zheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: Guangyuan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Chong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Nian
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Weiyang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Hongbin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Po-Chun
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chu
authors.affiliation: ∥Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, United States.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cui
keywords: Coulombic efficiency; Lithium metal anode; oxidized polyacrylonitrile; polymer fiber; uniform deposition