Insertion Type Li3VO4 Lithiophilic Sites Boosting Dendrite-Free Lithium Deposition in Trapping-and-leveling Model

Lithium (Li) metal batteries offer high energy densities but suffer from uncontrolled lithium deposition, causing serious dendrite growth and volume fluctuation. Tailorable Li nucleation and uniform early-stage plating are essential for homogenous Li deposition. Herein, insertion type Li₃VO₄ is first demonstrated as efficient lithiophilic sites trapping Li⁺ ions for homogenous nucleation. By homogenizing the distribution of electric field and ions flux via an ingenious architecture design with Li₃VO₄ nanodots grown on the carbon fibers (LVO@CNFs), leveling Li metal deposition after nucleation is also realized. These, together, result in smooth and dendrite-free Li deposition on the LVO@CNFs via a trapping-and-leveling model, giving rise to unprecedented performance (highly stable Li plating/stripping exceeding 2500 h at 2 mA cm⁻² under 3 mA h cm⁻² capacity, high-capacity retention of 82.5% over 500 cycles in a Li@LVO@CNFs//LiFePO₄ battery). The successful design of Li metal deposition host via insertion-type Li₃VO₄ may pave a new way for long lifespan Li metal batteries.