3D lithiophilic and conductive N-CnT@Cu₂O@Cu framework for a dendrite-free lithium metal battery

The lithium (Li) metal serves as a promising anode for rechargeable batteries, but dendrite growth and low Coulombic efficiency (CE) hamper its commercialization. Herein, we fabricate a 3D lithiophilic and conductive N-CNT@Cu₂O@Cu framework to suppress Li dendrites for the first time. It is a nitrogen-doped carbon nanotube (N-CNT) network with core−shell Cu₂O@Cu. N-CNTs and Cu₂O are lithiophilic for Li nucleation. CNTs and Cu nanoparticles on Cu₂O constitute a conductive framework to effectively transfer electrons and Li⁺ and reduce local current density. Moreover, Cu₂O@Cu serves as a concentrator to attract Li⁺ and connect several N-CNT fibers for effective current transmission. This structure proves to have an eminent synergistic effect in suppressing dendrites, which shows excellent electrochemical performance: a high CE of about 97% even after 1100 cycles with the Li−S electrolyte, which exceeds that of almost all published works to inhibit Li dendrites. It also exhibits impressive electrochemical performance in symmetric and full cells. It would shed light on the research of impeding dendrites and prospering the development of alkali-metal batteries.