Metallic zinc electrode with a high theoretical capacity of 820 mAh g−1 is highly considered as a promising candidate for next‐generation rechargeable batteries. However, the unavoidable hydrogen evolution, uncontrolled dendrite growth, and severe passivation reaction badly hinder its practical implementations. Herein, a robust polymer‐alloy artificial protective layer is designed to realize dendrite‐free Zn metal anode by the integration of zincophilic SnSb nanoparticles with Nafion. In comparison to the bare Zn electrode, the Nafion‐SnSb coated Zn (NFSS@Zn) electrode exhibits lower nucleation energy barrier, more uniform electric field distribution and stronger anti‐corrosion capability, thus availably suppressing the Zn dendrite growth and interfacial side reactions. As a consequence, the NFSS@Zn electrode exhibits a long cycle life over 1500 h at 1 mA cm−2 with an ultra‐low voltage hysteresis (25 mV). Meanwhile, when paired with a MnO2 cathode, the as‐prepared full cell also demonstrates stable performance for 1000 cycles at 3 A g−1. This work provides an inspired approach to boost the performance of Zn anodes.
Encouraged by recent advances in revealing significant effects of van der Waals wells on reaction dynamics, many people assume that van der Waals wells are inevitable in chemical reactions. Here we find that the weak long-range forces cause van der Waals saddles in the prototypical C(1D)+D2 complex-forming reaction that have very different dynamical effects from van der Waals wells at low collision energies. Accurate quantum dynamics calculations on our highly accurate ab initio potential energy surfaces with van der Waals saddles yield cross-sections in close agreement with crossed-beam experiments, whereas the same calculations on an earlier surface with van der Waals wells produce much smaller cross-sections at low energies. Further trajectory calculations reveal that the van der Waals saddle leads to a torsion then sideways insertion reaction mechanism, whereas the well suppresses reactivity. Quantum diffraction oscillations and sharp resonances are also predicted based on our ground- and excited-state potential energy surfaces.