Review on Artificial Interphases for Lithium Metal Anodes: From a Mechanical Perspective

Lithium (Li) metal is a promising candidate for next-generation high-energy-density rechargeable batteries. However, the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) inevitably suffers from mechanical fracture owing to the large morphological change during Li cycling, leading to the uncontrollable growth of Li dendrites, low Coulombic efficiency, and short cycle life. The fabrication of an artificial interphase is an effective strategy for improving the performances of Li metal anodes. The ideal artificial interphase should provide sufficient mechanical robustness to suppress dendritic Li growth and accommodate large volume changes during Li deposition-dissolution cycles. In this review, we focus on the fabrication of mechanically robust artificial interphases for stabilizing Li-metal anodes, including the underlying mechanism of SEI fracture, quantitative requirements for mechanical properties, measurements of mechanical properties, and recent progress in the fabrication of mechanically stable artificial interphases.