On the Road to Better Solid-State Batteries

A team from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory ÜBerkeley Lab) and Florida State University has designed a new blueprint for solid-state batteries that are less dependent on specific chemical elements, particularly critical metals that are challenging to source due to supply chain issues. Their work, reported recently in the journal Science , could advance solid-state batteries that are efficient and affordable. Touted for their high energy density and superior safety, solid-state batteries could be a game-changer for the electric car industry. But developing one that is affordable and also conductive enough to power a car for hundreds of miles on a single charge has long been a challenging hurdle to overcome. "With our new approach to solid-state batteries, you don't have to give up affordability for performance. Yan Zeng, Berkeley Lab staff scientist, Materials Sciences Division Yan Zeng, Berkeley Lab staff scientist (Credit: courtesy of Yan Zeng) "Our work is the first to solve this problem by designing a solid electrolyte with not just one metal but with a team of affordable metals," said co-first author Yan Zeng , a staff scientist in Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division. In a lithium-ion battery, the electrolyte works like a transfer hub where lithium ions move with electric charge to either power a device or recharge the battery.