近日，德国马克斯·普朗克可持续材料研究所刘传来团队报道了机械驱动锂枝晶在石榴石固体电解质中的渗透。该研究于2026年4月22日发表在《自然》杂志上。

全固态电池通过用固体电解质和金属锂负极替代易燃液体电解质与石墨负极，有望实现更高的安全性和能量密度。然而，柔软的锂枝晶穿透硬质陶瓷电解质仍然是实现全固态锂金属电池的重大障碍。由于难以表征枝晶尖端纳米尺度的锂分布及其微观结构，机械上柔软的锂枝晶如何导致硬质陶瓷电解质断裂的机制仍存在争议。

研究组结合多尺度低温电子显微技术与微机械断裂模型，探究了石榴石型电解质中由锂枝晶驱动的断裂过程。研究组直接观察到锂枝晶完全填充了纳米尺度的裂纹尖端，并延伸至微米级裂纹。锂枝晶中有限的晶格旋转和塑性变形表明，沉积的锂产生了显著的静水应力，该应力在固体电解质中诱发拉伸应力，从而驱动沿晶断裂和穿晶断裂。相比之下，在锂枝晶尖端前方的区域内，未检测到明显的锂或锂金属核富集。通过几何工程设计的电解质内部孔隙可以改变石榴石型固体电解质中机械驱动的锂穿透路径，从而缓解短路。该研究结果表明，晶界增韧和缺陷工程是设计抗枝晶固体电解质的有效策略。

附：英文原文

Title: Mechanically driven Li dendrite penetration in garnet solid electrolyte

Author: Zhang, Yuwei, Motahari, Soroush, Woods, Eric V., Zaefferer, Stefan, Schweizer, Peter, Zhang, Zhiyuan, Liu, Yuqi, Gault, Baptiste, Roters, Franz, Raabe, Dierk, Scheu, Christina, Joshi, Yug, Zhang, Siyuan, Liu, Chuanlai, Dehm, Gerhard

Issue&Volume: 2026-04-22

Abstract: All-solid-state batteries promise improved safety and higher energy density by replacing flammable liquid electrolytes and graphite anodes with solid electrolytes and lithium metal1,2,3,4. However, the penetration of soft lithium dendrites into hard ceramic electrolytes remains a substantial obstacle to realizing all-solid-state lithium metal batteries5,6,7. The mechanism by which mechanically soft lithium dendrites fracture hard ceramic electrolytes remains under debate7,8,9,10 owing to the challenges of characterizing nanoscale lithium distribution and its microstructure at the dendrite tip11. Here we investigate the fracture process driven by lithium dendrites in garnet electrolytes using multiscale cryogenic electron microscopy and micromechanical fracture models. We directly visualize lithium dendrites fully filling nanoscale crack tips and extending into micrometre-scale cracks. Limited crystal lattice rotation and plasticity in lithium dendrites indicate that the plated lithium generates substantial hydrostatic stress, which induces tensile stress in the solid electrolyte and drives both intergranular and transgranular fracture. By contrast, the region ahead of the lithium dendrite tip shows no measurable enrichment of lithium or lithium metal nuclei. The mechanically driven lithium penetration in garnet solid electrolyte can be redirected by geometrically engineered voids in the electrolyte, thus mitigating short-circuiting. Our findings suggest that grain boundary toughening and defect engineering are effective strategies for designing dendrite-resistant solid electrolytes.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-026-10415-9

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10415-9