Quantifying Sodium Dendrite Formation in Na5SmSi4O12 Solid Electrolytes

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Ansgar Lowack - , Chair of Inorganic Non-Metallic Materials, Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)
  • Yogeshbhai Nakum - , Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)
  • Rafael Anton - , Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)
  • Kristian Nikolowski - , Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)
  • Mareike Partsch - , Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)
  • Alexander Michaelis - , Chair of Inorganic Non-Metallic Materials, Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (Author)

Abstract

This study addresses the critical challenge in solid-state batteries (SSBs) by analyzing sodium dendrite formation in Na5SmSi4O12 (NaSmSiO) solid electrolytes qualitatively and quantitatively. Symmetric Na|NaSmSiO|Na cells show negligible interfacial resistances and a high ionic conductivity of (1.5 ± 0.1) mS cm−1 at 30 °C with an activation energy for sodium transport of (0.31 ± 0.1) eV. Dendrite formation is systematically induced using a linear current ramp of 1 mA cm−2 h−1. Short circuits manifest as sharp resistance drops upon reaching the critical current density and are visually correlated with highly localized sodium filament penetration through the solid electrolyte. This observation indicates the presence of a “weakest link” within the material. The thermodynamics of this behavior are discussed. A statistical analysis of 30 cell tests reveals an average critical current density of 0.96 mA cm−2. Failure occurrence is fitted to a shifted Weibull distribution. The resulting shape parameter of 1.10 suggests an approximately consistent failure rate above a critical threshold of 0.47 mA cm−2. This work establishes quantitative benchmarks for NaSmSiO's dendrite resistance and introduces a robust statistical framework which can serve as a reference for future studies in this field.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere202500279
Number of pages11
JournalBatteries and Supercaps
Volume8
Issue number12
Publication statusPublished - 16 Jul 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 105010602416

Keywords

Keywords

  • critical current density, dendrites, sodium metal batteries, solid-state batteries, Weibull statistics