{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,1]],"date-time":"2026-10-01T00:12:50Z","timestamp":1790813570509,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)","issue":"6790","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2027,3,12]],"date-time":"2027-03-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1804809600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":365,"URL":"https:\/\/www.science.org\/content\/page\/science-licenses-journal-article-reuse"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000015","name":"U.S. Department of Energy","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["DE-SC0018193"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DE-SC0018193"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000015","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000928","name":"Welch Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["C-2065"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["C-2065"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000928","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000928","name":"Welch Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["C-1716"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["C-1716"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000928","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000928","name":"Welch Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["C-2248"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["C-2248"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000928","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100006134","name":"Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["DE-EE0008864"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DE-EE0008864"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100006134","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100006134","name":"Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["DE-EE0008864"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DE-EE0008864"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100006134","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"NSF","award":["2239545"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2239545"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.science.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Science"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>The growth and penetration of lithium dendrites through electrolytes and separators remain key challenges to realizing high\u2013energy density lithium-metal batteries. Using mechanically strong electrolytes and separators has been considered a promising strategy based on the commonly believed softness of lithium. However, dendrite formation persists in stiff solid electrolytes, suggesting distinct mechanical behaviors. We measured the mechanical properties of individual lithium dendrites using an air-free protocol. We found that lithium dendrites are unexpectedly strong and brittle, with fracture stress greater than ~150 megapascals, unlike the ductile bulk metal. Cryo\u2013transmission electron microscopy and mechanical modeling showed that this behavior arises from solid electrolyte interface constraints and nanoscale strengthening. These findings provide alternative mechanisms for dendrite penetration and dead lithium formation as well as guidance for design strategies for lithium-metal batteries.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1126\/science.adu9988","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]],"date-time":"2026-03-12T18:00:57Z","timestamp":1773338457000},"page":"1125-1129","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.34133\/aaas_crossmark","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":23,"title":["Strong and brittle lithium dendrites"],"prefix":"10.1126","volume":"391","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6086-5431","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Qing","family":"Ai","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6797-4828","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Boyu","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4637-0109","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Xing","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA."},{"name":"Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bongki","family":"Shin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wenhua","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Shared Equipment Authority, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4760-1378","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Guanhui","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2308-1053","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Lihong","family":"Zhao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston (TcSUH), University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xintong","family":"Weng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8435-636X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Qiyi","family":"Fang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-5037-5620","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Tianshu","family":"Zhai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7084-6392","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Doug","family":"Steinbach","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9816-5764","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yifan","family":"Zhu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8080-7418","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yifeng","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2482-4613","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Fan","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7759-8915","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Xiaoyin","family":"Tian","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7582-4229","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Hua","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Youtian","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xuan","family":"Zhao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."},{"name":"Applied Physics Graduate Program, Smalley-Curl Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0563-4611","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yimo","family":"Han","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7194-3485","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Ming","family":"Tang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8785-5030","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yan","family":"Yao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston (TcSUH), University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8612-9689","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Ting","family":"Zhu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8656-846X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Huajian","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore , Singapore."},{"name":"School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Singapore."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4351-9561","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Jun","family":"Lou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and the Rice Advanced Materials Institute, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA."},{"name":"Department of Chemistry, Rice University, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX, USA."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"221","reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_2_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acsenergylett.6b00650"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.chemrev.0c00431"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.201606187"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.trechm.2019.02.015"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1149\/1.1850854"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matt.2021.04.016"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/aenm.201701003"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.chemmater.5b03854"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/aenm.201602011"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_11_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/s10853-018-2971-3"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_12_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.1615733114"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_13_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41565-019-0558-z"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_14_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41565-019-0604-x"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_15_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.202100404"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_16_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acsenergylett.2c02430"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_17_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acsenergylett.8b02381"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_18_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-021-03488-1"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_19_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.micron.2004.02.003"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_20_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1126\/science.aam6014"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_21_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.matdes.2023.112200"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_22_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.nanolett.9b04940"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_23_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1021\/acsenergylett.9b00433"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_24_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1103\/PhysRevB.2.3952"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_25_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0022-3697(69)90386-2"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_26_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1109\/PAC.2003.1288558"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_27_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actamat.2012.12.044"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_28_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1149\/2.1441707jes"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_29_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41565-022-01148-7"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_30_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0956-7151(93)90092-7"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_31_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1088\/0965-0393\/3\/5\/008"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_32_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1115\/1.3167075"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_33_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/1081286519848822"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_34_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actamat.2022.118155"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_35_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/adma.202209091"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_36_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1039\/D5EE02275D"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_37_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/aenm.201902568"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_38_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-024-48071-0"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_39_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-024-45613-4"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_40_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jpowsour.2020.227989"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_41_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-023-05970-4"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_42_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1115\/1.4056289"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_43_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/adfm.202007564"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_44_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-025-57259-x"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_45_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1126\/science.abg5998"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_46_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-025-59567-8"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_47_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1126\/science.aap8787"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_48_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.actamat.2021.116832"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_49_2","volume-title":"Abaqus Reference Manuals, Version 6.10","year":"2010","unstructured":"Abaqus Reference Manuals, Version 6.10 (Dassault Syst\u00e8mes Simulia, 2010)."},{"key":"e_1_3_2_50_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1103\/PhysRevLett.100.025502"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_51_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/095008300176353"}],"container-title":["Science"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1126\/science.adu9988","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"syndication"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1126\/science.adu9988","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,17]],"date-time":"2026-03-17T18:02:19Z","timestamp":1773770539000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/science.adu9988"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]},"references-count":50,"journal-issue":{"issue":"6790","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1126\/science.adu9988"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1126\/science.adu9988","relation":{},"ISSN":["0036-8075","1095-9203"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0036-8075","type":"print"},{"value":"1095-9203","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,12]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2024-11-30","order":0,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-01-16","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-03-12","order":3,"name":"published","label":"Published","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}]}}