Atomic Symbiotic‐Catalyst for Low‐Temperature Zinc‐Air Battery

Abstract Atomic‐level designed electrocatalysts, including single‐/dual‐atom catalysts, have attracted extensive interests due to their maximized atom utilization efficiency and increased activity. Herein, a new electrocatalyst system termed as “atomic symbiotic‐catalyst”, that marries the advantages of typical single‐/dual‐atom catalysts while addressing their respective weaknesses, was proposed. In atomic symbiotic‐catalyst, single‐atom MN x and local carbon defects formed under a specific thermodynamic condition, act synergistically to achieve high electrocatalytic activity and battery efficiency. This symbiotic‐catalyst shows greater structural precision and preparation accessibility than those of dual‐atom catalysts owing to its reduced complexity in chemical space. Meanwhile, it outperforms the intrinsic activities of conventional single‐atom catalysts due to multi‐active‐sites synergistic effect. As a proof‐of‐concept study, an atomic symbiotic‐catalyst comprising single‐atom MnN 4 moieties and abundant sp 3 ‐hybridized carbon defects was constructed for low‐temperature zinc‐air battery, which exhibited a high peak power density of 76 mW cm −2 with long‐term stability at −40 °C, representing a top‐level performance of such batteries.