Few‐layer Graphene Lithiophilic and Sodiophilic Diffusion Layer on Porous Stainless Steel as Lithium and Sodium Metal Anodes

In order to subdue the obvious problem of uneven electric field distribution on regularly used copper/aluminum current collectors for alkali metal batteries, graphene on porous stainless steel (pSS_Gr) was fabricated using the ion etching technique that is employed as an effective host for lithium and sodium metal anodes. The binder‐free pSS_Gr demonstrated stable Li plating and stripping at areal current and capacity of 6 mA cm−2 and 2.54 mAh cm−2, respectively, for over 1000 cycles with 98% coulombic efficiency (C.E.). Also, in the case of Na metal anode, the host has shown stable performance at 4 mA cm−2 and 1 mAh cm−2 over 1000 cycles with ∼100% C.E.. Further, a full cell composed of Li‐plated pSS_Gr as an anode and LiFePO4 as a cathode is electrochemically tested at 50 mA g−1 current density with stable 100 cycles. 3D free‐standing and binder‐free few‐layer graphene deposited porous stainless steel has been synthesized through the CVD technique and used as a functional scaffold for Li and Na metal anodes. The efficient deposition of Li and Na over 1000 cycles was achieved due to the porous architecture and deposition of conducting few‐layer graphene. Post‐cycling FESEM, XPS, and depth profiles provide Li/Na deposition insights.