Abstract
Electrochemical energy storage devices commonly face a trade-off between specific energy and power capability. Black phosphorus offers a high theoretical capacity of 2596 mA h g−1, but its practical application is limited by slow reaction kinetics during multiphase phosphorus redox processes. These sluggish transformations, involving bond rearrangement and soluble intermediates, hinder fast charging and compromise cycling stability. Here we show that introducing phosphorus–nitrogen bonds into a black phosphorus/carbon composite regulates the reaction pathway and accelerates charge transport. The engineered bonding environment modifies the electronic structure of black phosphorus and lowers lithium-ion diffusion barriers, enabling faster lithiation and delithiation. Meanwhile, nitrogen sites in the carbon matrix confine lithium–phosphorus intermediates, reducing their migration and improving structural stability. This combined effect enhances both rate capability and reversibility. When coupled with lithium iron phosphate in a pouch cell, the composite negative electrode delivers a specific energy of 282 Wh kg−1 and retains 80% of its capacity after 10 min of charging at high specific current. The device also maintains stable operation over thousands of cycles, demonstrating improved durability under fast charging conditions.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the founding support from the Beijing Natural Science Foundation of China (Z230018), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52207250 and 2377218), the Youth Innovation Promotion Association, CAS (Y2021052), Institute of Electrical Engineering, CAS (E155110101). And T.Y. Ma acknowledge the Australian Research Council (ARC) through Future Fellowship (FT210100298), Discovery Project (DP220100603), Linkage Project (LP210200504, LP220100088, and LP230200897) and Industrial Transformation Research Hub (IH240100009) schemes, the Australian Government through the Cooperative Research Centres Projects (CRCPXIII000077), the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) as part of ARENA’s Transformative Research Accelerating Commercialisation Program (TM021), and European Commission’s Australia-Spain Network for Innovation and Research Excellence (AuSpire).
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Y.B. Ma, K. Wang conceived and designed the experiments. Y.B. Ma, K.W. Liu performed sample fabrication, characterization and electrochemical measurements. Y. Guo, Y.N. Xu, X.Z. Sun, X. Zhang, X.N. Li, and Z.C. Xie participated in part of the experiments and conducted simulation experiments; L.F. Zhu, Z.L. Li, and H.G. Pan participated in TEM and HR-TEM characterization. B.H. Jia, Y.W. Ma, and T.Y. Ma co-wrote the paper. All authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.
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Nature Communications thanks Liuhua Mu, who co-reviewed with Shiqi Sheng; Xiangming He and the other anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. A peer review file is available.
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Ma, Y., Liu, K., Wang, K. et al. Overcoming redox barriers in black phosphorus negative electrodes through lattice P–N engineering for fast-charging Li-ion batteries. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-72193-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-72193-2
