Recent progress in design strategies for high-performance metal-tellurium batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries are widely researched for next-generation batteries due to their impressive energy density. However, despite the high theoretical capacity of sulfur cathodes, the electrochemical performance at high current densities is inferior due to the insulating property of sulfur. Therefore, research on tellurium cathodes has received enormous attention due to their comparably high volumetric capacity and considerable electronic conductivity. Additionally, metal alternatives have recently been used for anodes to address the increasing price and uneven distribution of lithium metal. Therefore, researchers have focused on the battery systems implementing tellurium cathodes with various metal anodes. However, the importance of a deep understanding of the complex conversion reactions in metal-tellurium batteries has been overlooked. In this review, we focus on the problems arising from the volume expansion of tellurium and the shuttle effect phenomenon of soluble polytellurides. Moreover, we elucidate their conversion mechanisms with diverse metal ions and overview the strategies in cathode design for high-performance metal-tellurium batteries.