“The lithium metal battery is the next generation of battery after the lithium ion battery,” said Donghai Wang, professor of mechanical engineering and a key researcher in the Battery and Energy Storage Technology Center, Penn State. “It uses a lithium anode and has higher energy density, but has problems with dendritic growth, low efficiency and low cycle life.”
The solution to these problems, according to the researchers, is a self-assembling monolayer that is electrochemically active so that it can decompose into its proper components and protect the surface of the lithium anode.
