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Wei Zhang, Andrea Paolella, Maria-Magdalena Titirici, [Takashi Tsuchiya](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6950-6160)

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[Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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[Advanced architectures of electrochemical interfaces](https://mdr.nims.go.jp/datasets/ec45a1cd-49c2-4906-9973-c3d6b01390b7)

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Advanced architectures of electrochemical interfacescommunications chemistry EditorialA Nature Portfolio journalhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01633-9Advanced architectures of electrochemicalinterfacesCheck for updatesCommunications Chemistry isdelighted to introduce a Collection ofarticles on the intricate subject ofelectrochemical interfaces. Here, theGuest Editors introduce the topic,outlinesomeof the themescoveredbythe Collection content, and look to thefuture of the field."The interface is the device" was coined by Nobellaureate Herbert Kroemer. Electrochemistry isthe science of interfaces, and interface issues areprevalent in various energy storagedevices.Theseinclude physical, chemical, and electrochemicalinterface problems commonly encountered, suchas electrode fracture and pulverization duringcycling; loss and failure of physical contact sur-faces; decomposition of the solid–electrolyteinterface (SEI); charge accumulation and mutualdiffusion of elements at the solid-state electrolyte(SSE) interface; dendrite growth; lattice mis-match, among others. These challenges posesignificant obstacles to the performanceenhancement and reliable operation of energystorage/catalytic devices. Due to the lack ofcomprehensive understanding of the dynamicchanges at interfaces and the complex mechan-isms of electrochemical reactions, the foremostfactor towards achieving sustainable and efficientelectrochemical devices lies in constructing stableinterfaces.Collection themesThe concept of wettability was first introducedbyThomas Young in 1805. The wettability at theinterface between the electrode and electrolytedetermines the degree and efficiency of theirinteraction, which significantly influences theelectrochemical storage andconversion efficiencyof materials. Developing a profound under-standing and effective regulation of electrodewettability have become pivotal research direc-tions for enhancing the performance of energystorage devices. For example, chemical treatmentof substrate interfacewettability and conductivitycan enhance the capacitance (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-022-00719-y)1. In metal-based bat-teries, wettability affects nucleation overpotential,nucleation sites, dendrite formation and growth,as well as the composition and constitution of theinterfacial layer (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01350-9)2.Throughout their lifecycle, the degradation ofelectrochemical devices is often based on theinteractions and interlocking dependenciesamong various mechanical, physicochemical,and electrochemical degradation mechanisms.The relevant significance of these influencingparameters evolves, making the detection of realaging mechanisms and the establishment ofpredictive models particularly challenging. Thegrowth, rupture, and repair of the SEI are primarymechanisms contributing to battery aging. Inpractical applications, commonly selected para-meters such as different solvents, salts, electrolyteconcentrations, and water content can be utilizedto evaluate the formation and long-term evolu-tion of SEIs (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01381-2)3.The materials and interfaces involved in thefield of electrochemistry possess various struc-tures, including crystalline, amorphous, andglassy states, and often contain a significantnumber of light elements. Thesematerials exhibithigh chemical reactivity and are sensitive toimpurities, air, and electron irradiation,making itchallenging to obtain authentic and accuratestructural information about the samples. TheSEI film is highly complex, thin, and character-ized by a small gradient in electron/ion con-centration. Achieving accurate electrochemicalreactions often necessitates specialized designsfor structure, composition and space charges. Forexample, the conductive properties of hydro-genated diamond-based electric double-layertransistors have been utilized to evaluate theelectric double-layer effect and the suppression atthe interface between solid electrolytes and elec-tronic materials (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00554-7)4.The development of the emerging anode-lesslithium metal solid-state battery (ALMSSB)technology requires an understanding of thereactivity between current collectors and solidelectrolytes. Therefore, it is necessary to optimizethe interface that forms during charge and dis-charge processes. For example, study of thereactivity of various current collectorswith a solidelectrolyte enables identification of metals thatlead to good stability versus metals that lead tomore pronounced degradation phenomena,enabling optimized design (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01609-9)5. The emergence andinnovation of more sophisticated characteriza-tion techniques have provided powerful tools forexploring the physicochemical changes at inter-faces. Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM)offers the potential to resolve the compositionand spatial arrangements of SEI components atthe atomic level (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00521-2)6. However, the interface not onlyinvolves solid–solid interactions; the formationand participation of gases (such as O2, CO2, andH2) during electrochemical reactions contributeto the evolution of solid–gas and liquid–gasinterfaces, which remains poorly understood.Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry(TOF-SIMS) can determine the chemical com-position and morphology of SEIs through thecontrol of the type of sputtering ions, allowing fordepth profiling and compositional analysis(https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01426-0)7.Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ss-NMR) is useful for probing the chemical envir-onments of target atomic nuclei, providing richinformation on ionic diffusion dynamics andcomplex electrochemical reaction mechanisms,with higher spatial resolution. This technique canalso assess the impact of interfacial changes onionic transport within lithium aluminum tita-niumphosphate (LATP) electrolytes (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01505-2)8.Electrochemical analytical methods holdadvantages such as their non-destructive nature,ease of operation, and high efficiency, and arewidely used for assessing interfacial behavior.Techniques such as electrochemical impedancespectroscopy (EIS), incremental capacity analysis(ICA), and differential voltage analysis (DVA)help obtain information on the local-scaletransfer of electrons and ions at the interface,quantifying the contributions of electrode andinterfacial processes.Mechanical instability at theinterface and byproducts can also be monitoredby developing new characterization techniques.For example, spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) cancharacterize the accumulation and depletionlayers within SSE; combined with theoreticalmodels, it can elucidate the physical properties ofCommunications Chemistry |           (2025) 8:235 11234567890():,;1234567890():,;http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1038/s42004-025-01633-9&domain=pdfhttp://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1038/s42004-025-01633-9&domain=pdfhttp://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1038/s42004-025-01633-9&domain=pdfhttps://www.nature.com/articles/nmat3244.pdfhttps://www.nature.com/articles/nmat3244.pdfhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-022-00719-yhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-022-00719-yhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01350-9https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01350-9https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01381-2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-024-01381-2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00554-7https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00554-7https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01609-9https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01609-9https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00521-2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-021-00521-2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01426-0https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01505-2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01505-2www.nature.com/commschemthe space charge layer (https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-023-00923-4)9.OutlookSignificant progress has been made in advancedcharacterization techniques, simulation/model-ing capabilities, machine learning, and high-throughput screening in the complex field ofelectrochemical interfaces. However, indepen-dent analyses are insufficient to provide a com-prehensive understanding of the electrochemical,morphological, microstructural, and chemicalchanges that occur during device operation. Thedevelopment of a series of cross-scale and mul-timodal in situ characterization methods andtheories is crucial for real-time and accurateobservation of the dynamic evolution of electro-chemical interfaces. This collaborative effort willhelp reveal the intricate mechanisms underlyinginterface evolution, which is essential for dee-pening our understanding and optimizing deviceperformances.Wei Zhang1 , Andrea Paolella2 ,Maria-Magdalena Titirici3 &Takashi Tsuchiya41Key Laboratory of Mobile Materials MOE,School of Materials Science & Engineering,Electron Microscopy Center, ChangbaishanLaboratory, International Center of FutureScience, Jilin University, Changchun, China.2Department of Chemical and GeologicalSciences, University of Modena and ReggioEmilia, Modena, Italy. 3Department of ChemicalEngineering, Imperial College London,London, UK. 4Research Center for MaterialsNanoarchitectonics (MANA), National Institutefor Materials Science (NIMS), Tsukuba, Ibaraki,Japan. e-mail: weizhang@jlu.edu.cn;Andrea.paolella@unimore.it;m.titirici@imperial.ac.uk;TSUCHIYA.Takashi@nims.go.jpReferences1. Gouda, A. et al. Biosourced quinones for high-performanceenvironmentally benign electrochemical capacitors viainterface engineering. Commun. Chem. 5, 98 (2022).2. Kravchyk, K. V., Zhang, H. & Kovalenko, M. V. On theinterfacial phenomena at the Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO)/Liinterface. Commun. Chem. 7, 257 (2024).3. Grill, J. & Popovic-Neuber, J. Long term porosity of solidelectrolyte interphase on model silicon anodes with liquidbattery electrolytes. Commun. Chem. 7, 297 (2024).4. Tsuchiya, T. et al. The electric double layer effect and itsstrong suppression at Li+ solid electrolyte/hydrogenateddiamond interfaces. Commun. Chem. 4, 117 (2021).5. Tron, A., Beutl, A., Mohammad, I. & Paolella, A. Probing thechemical stability between current collectors and argyroditeLi6PS5Cl sulfide electrolyte.Commun. Chem. 8, 212 (2025).6. Ortner, T. S. A granular look at solid electrolyte interfaces inlithium-ion batteries. Commun. Chem. 4, 79 (2021).7. Mense, M. et al. ToF-SIMS sputter depth profiling ofinterphases and coatings on lithium metal surfaces.Commun. Chem. 8, 31 (2025).8. Marko, A. et al. Interfacial lithiation of lithium aluminumtitanium phosphate explored by 7Li NMR. Commun. Chem.8, 102 (2025).9. Katzenmeier, L. et al. Mass transport and charge transferthrough an electrified interface between metallic lithium andsolid-state electrolytes. Commun. Chem. 6, 124 (2023).Competing interestsThe authors declare no competing interests.OpenAccess This article is licensed under a Creative CommonsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 InternationalLicense, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing,distribution and reproduction in anymediumor format, as long asyou give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and thesource, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, andindicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not havepermission under this licence to share adapted material derivedfrom this article or parts of it. The images or other third partymaterial in this article are included in the article’s CreativeCommons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line tothe material. If material is not included in the article’s CreativeCommons licence and your intended use is not permitted bystatutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will needto obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view acopy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.© The Author(s) 2025communications chemistry EditorialCommunications Chemistry |           (2025) 8:235 2https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-023-00923-4https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-023-00923-4mailto:weizhang@jlu.edu.cnmailto:Andrea.paolella@unimore.itmailto:m.titirici@imperial.ac.ukmailto:TSUCHIYA.Takashi@nims.go.jphttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/www.nature.com/commschem Advanced architectures of electrochemical interfaces Collection themes Outlook References Competing interests