Research Digest — 2026-09-27¶
Solid Electrolytes & Ion Transport¶
1. Electrolyte design for future batteries¶
Source: Nature Reviews Materials · 📅 2026-09-24 · ↗ Open paper
A perspective review reframing electrolyte design around charge-carrier chemical potentials, showing how their modulation governs electrode reactions, interphase formation, and transport in both liquid and solid systems. Argues that electrolytes do more than conduct ions — they reshape the energetic landscape of full cells.
Relevance to DENG.Group
Whole-group reading: the chemical-potential framework gives Jerry's team a unifying lens connecting Naibing's polymer electrolyte thermodynamics, Yan and Mengke's halide stability work, and Umang's interfacial energetics. Useful framing for proposals and for linking the group's individual projects into one design philosophy.
2. Combining physical models with dynamically acquired experimental information for the optimization of multicomponent NASICON fast ionic conductors in a self-driving laboratory¶
Source: arXiv · 📅 2026-09-24 · ↗ Open paper
Introduces a self-driving laboratory strategy that dynamically assesses composition-dependent synthetic accessibility together with target ionic properties via aggregated cost functions, guiding autonomous optimization of multicomponent NASICON fast ion conductors while maintaining phase purity.
Relevance to DENG.Group
Demonstrates the closed-loop AI + synthesis workflow the field is moving toward — directly complements Yanhao's ML potential-driven screening and offers a template for combining the group's simulations with experimental collaborators on oxide/Na conductor discovery.
3. Hops and jumps help lithium ions flow faster in a solid-state battery material¶
Source: DOE BES Science Highlight · 📅 2026-09-15 · ↗ Open paper
Combining machine-learning molecular dynamics with inelastic/quasielastic neutron scattering, the study resolves Li-ion dynamics in superionic Li6PS5Cl: rapid liquid-like hopping between lattice sites is enabled by the dynamic 'breathing' of vibrating diffusion bottlenecks above the superionic transition, strongly enhancing long-range conductivity.
Relevance to DENG.Group
A model example of ML-MD validated against neutron spectroscopy — exactly the validation loop Mengke Li uses for ion transport and thermal properties in halides, and the phonon/bottleneck physics connects to Yan Li's degradation and transport simulations of superionic conductors.
Dendrites, Grain Boundaries & Phase-Field¶
4. Decoupled energy-stable Runge-Kutta schemes of arbitrary order for the anisotropic phase-field dendritic crystal growth model¶
Source: arXiv · 📅 2026-09-23 · ↗ Open paper
Constructs arbitrary-order, unconditionally energy-stable Runge-Kutta schemes for the anisotropic phase-field dendritic growth model, using a matrix diagonalization technique to decouple the elliptic system into independent solvable equations at each step. (Updated preprint; version announced September 2026.)
Relevance to DENG.Group
Numerical methods content for Shoutong Jin: energy-stable, decoupled solvers can cut the computational cost of his dendrite-growth phase-field simulations while improving accuracy at large time steps.