A novel triple gradient three-dimensional porous current collector for stable lithium metal anodes

Uncontrolled lithium dendrite growth on lithium metal anodes can lead to serious safety hazards and performance degradation, especially during high-rate operation, which severely restricts its practical application in lithium-based batteries. The present authors design a novel triple gradient three-dimensional (3D) porous current collector, which is lithiophilicity and has high specific surface area and electrolyte wettability. It regulates the lithium deposition behavior, causing it to grow in a bottom-up model, and promotes the formation of dense solid electrolyte interface (SEI) of LiF-rich, leading to the suppression the growth of lithium dendrites and improvement of the stable battery cycling significantly. The symmetric cell for this novel current collector enables dendrite-free lithium deposition with ultralow polarization (about 6 mV) over 2850 h. The full cell paired with high loading LiNi_0.8Co_0.1Mn_0.1O₂ cathodes (11.5 mg cm⁻²) delivers 150 mAh g⁻¹ after 210 cycles at 5 C. The design for the triple gradient current collector integrates lithiophilicity, porosity, and interfacial dynamics optimization, which providing the universal strategy for lithium metal anodes of high capacity and fast charging capability.