Recent Advances in In Situ Characterization of the Electrochemical Processes at the Alloy Anode-Electrolyte Interfaces

Lithium-metal batteries (LMBs) have garnered widespread attention due to their high energy density. Alloy anodes are particularly notable for their exceptional specific capacity used in LMBs. However, alloy anodes encounter significant challenges in interfacial issues, which include sluggish interfacial reaction kinetics and mechanical failures induced by force-electric coupling at the interface. In situ characterization of interface evolution is crucial to gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental origins of these interface issues. This review systematically examines the challenges associated with alloy anodes and highlights the role of in situ characterization techniques in elucidating the reaction kinetics, mechanical evolution mechanisms, and dendrite formation at the alloy anode-electrolyte interface. The challenges and future development in this field are proposed in the outlook.