Laser-Constructing 3D Copper Current Collector with Crystalline Orientation Selectivity for Stable Lithium Metal Batteries

The practical application of lithium (Li) metal anodes in high-capacity batteries is impeded by the formation of hazardous Li dendrites. To address this challenge, this research presents a novel methodology that combines laser ablation and heat treatment to precisely induce controlled grain growth within laser-structured grooves on copper (Cu) current collectors. Specifically, this approach enhances the prevalence of Cu (100) facets within the grooves, effectively lowering the overpotential for Li nucleation and promoting preferential Li deposition. Unlike approaches that modify the entire surface of collectors, our work focuses on selectively enhancing lithiophilicity within the grooves to mitigate the formation of Li dendrites and exhibit exceptional performance metrics. The half-cell with these collectors maintains a remarkable Coulombic efficiency of 97.42% over 350 cycles at 1 mA cm⁻². The symmetric cell can cycle stably for 1600 h at 0.5 mA cm⁻². Furthermore, when integrated with LiFePO₄ cathodes, the full-cell configuration demonstrates outstanding capacity retention of 92.39% after 400 cycles at a 1C discharge rate. This study introduces a novel technique for fabricating selective lithiophilic three-dimensional (3D) Cu current collectors, thereby enhancing the performance of Li metal batteries. The insights gained from this approach hold promise for enhancing the performance of all laser-processed 3D Cu current collectors by enabling precise lithiophilic modifications within complex structures.