Lithium-rich layered oxides (LRLOs) offer exceptionally high capacities but suffer rapid energy loss because of irreversible migration of transition-metal (TM) ions during cycling, triggering oxygen release and voltage decay. This study presents a breakthrough strategy: using trace dopants (only 0.75 at.% W⁶⁺) placed precisely at tetrahedral sites in the lithium layer. These isolated single dopants exert long-range Coulomb repulsion, suppressing both in-plane and out-of-plane TM migration across a ~2-nm region. As a result, cation ordering is preserved over 250 cycles, oxygen release is significantly reduced, and voltage decay drops to just 0.75 mV per cycle. This work provides a new atom-efficient pathway for stabilizing high-energy LRLO cathodes.

Developing durable oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts for acidic media is vital for advancing proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE). This study reveals that the stability of spinel oxide Co₃O₄ is profoundly dictated by the anchoring sites of iridium single atoms. By directly comparing iridium atoms at surface three-fold hollow sites versus lattice sites, the researchers found that lattice-embedded iridium dramatically suppresses cobalt and oxygen migration, enhances metal–oxygen covalency, and preserves structural integrity under harsh acidic conditions. These findings highlight a site-specific stabilization mechanism and provide an effective atom-level strategy for designing durable and low precious-metal OER catalysts.

A new study introduces a simple molecular-engineering strategy that dramatically improves the reversibility of zinc plating and stripping in aqueous zinc batteries. By using methylurea as a low-cost electrolyte additive, researchers achieved in situ formation of a robust solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) that stabilizes the zinc surface and suppresses parasitic reactions. This engineered SEI enables Coulombic efficiencies approaching 100%, dendrite-free deposition, and unprecedented cycling life across multiple battery configurations. The work demonstrates that a carefully designed interphase can overcome long-standing limitations of aqueous zinc systems and provides a pathway toward practical, cost-effective anode-free zinc batteries with ultrahigh energy efficiency and durability.

In an innovative study, researchers apply cross-modal interaction and selection mechanisms to robotic visual–inertial trajectory localization. This approach not only improves localization accuracy for robots under GNSS-denied conditions but also effectively enhances the robustness of the algorithm in complex environments.

Beijing’s metro could quietly carry freight during off-peak hours without new tunnels, a joint timetable–rolling-stock model shows. Flexible train compositions and selective skip-stop patterns cut operating costs by up to 25% while keeping passenger delays minimal.