Suppression of Dendrite Growth and Enhanced Sodiophilicity in Sodium Metal Batteries by Sb-Coated Zn Current Collector

Sodium metal batteries (SMBs) have gained significant attention as a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to lithium-ion batteries due to sodium's high abundance and low cost. However, the practical application of SMBs is hindered by challenges such as dendrite growth and unstable solid electrolyte interphase. Herein, a novel Sb-coated Zn (Sb@Zn) current collector is proposed to address these issues. The Sb nanosheets, uniformly distributed on the Zn substrate, provide a hierarchical structure with abundant active sites for sodium deposition and exhibit excellent sodiophilicity. During cycling, the formation of Sb–Zn alloy phases further enhances the anode's stability by suppressing dendrite growth and promoting uniform Na plating/stripping. Comprehensive characterization, electrochemical evaluations, and DFT calculation demonstrate that the Sb@Zn composite significantly outperforms bare Zn in terms of cycling stability (500 cycles at 5C). Owing to the formed sodium affinity sites, the symmetrical cells displayed an extended cycle life of 600 h at 1 mA cm⁻² with 1 mAh cm⁻². This work highlights the important effects of Sb, providing a scalable and effective strategy for addressing the critical challenges of SMBs. The Sb@Zn current collector offers a promising pathway for the development of high-performance anodes in next-generation SMBs.