Lithium interphase enhancement for applications in lithium–sulphur batteries

Stable lithium plating/stripping of metallic lithium anode is considered as the urgent challenge for the development of post-lithium-ion batteries including lithium-sulphur and lithium-air batteries. In this work, we report a new facile and cost-effective method to grow a protective layer on the surface of lithium metal through immersing the lithium surface in a nitrogen-saturated solution that eliminates the operational restrictions of reported modification approaches in controlled atmosphere. N₂-treated lithium shows prolonged cycling in a symmetric configuration and chemical stability. We demonstrate that the treated Li anode notably enhances the cycling stability, coulombic efficiency, as well as the rate capability of lithium-sulphur cells.