An Ultrathin Inorganic Molecular Crystal Interfacial Layer for Stable Zn Anode

Zn metal anode suffers from dendrite growth and side reactions during cycling, significantly deteriorating the lifespan of aqueous Zn metal batteries. Herein, we introduced an ultrathin and ultra-flat Sb2O3 molecular crystal layer to stabilize Zn anode. The in situ optical and atomic force microscopes observations show that such a 10nm Sb2O3 thin layer could ensure uniform under-layer Zn deposition with suppressed tip growth effect, while the traditional WO3 layer undergoes an uncontrolled up-layer Zn deposition. The superior regulation capability is attributed to the good electronic-blocking ability and low Zn affinity of the molecular crystal layer, free of dangling bonds. Electrochemical tests exhibit Sb2O3 layer can significantly improve the cycle life of Zn anode from 72h to 2800h, in contrast to the 900h of much thicker WO3 even in 100nm. This research opens up the application of inorganic molecular crystals as the interfacial layer of Zn anode.

Automated summary

In this study, we introduced an ultrathin and ultra-flat Sb2O3 molecular crystal layer to stabilize the anode of Zn metal batteries. The experimental results show that the Sb2O3 layer can effectively control the deposition of Zn metal and significantly improve the cycle life of the batteries.