Electronic and Ionic Channels in Working Interfaces of Lithium Metal Anodes

Lithium metal batteries have been considered as a promising choice to satisfy rising energy requirements for upmarket consumer electronics and electric vehicles due to the high theoretical specific capacity and most negative equilibrium potential of Li metal anodes. With regards to practical and safe batteries, interfaces in the batteries are required to be clearly perceived, especially related to Li metal anodes. In this Perspective, we describe the interfaces in the anode of Li metal batteries, mainly focusing on the electronic and ionic behavior of the solid-electrolyte interphase and mixed conducting interphase. The features of these interfaces are comprehensively recapitulated. Current and future strategies to fabricate the mixed conducting interphase are anatomized. The efficient fabrication of a composite electrode with prestored Li metal and rational ionic and electronic networks is still challenging, which further requires interdisciplinary collaboration from surface chemistry, structured materials, computation, and engineering science.