If you blast battery parts with neutron beams, they actually start charging and discharging way faster than they did before.
arXiv · March 16, 2026 · 2603.12898
Why it matters
While radiation usually breaks things, scientists found that precise neutron bombardment creates useful 'gaps' in the atomic lattice of battery materials. These gaps act like express lanes for lithium ions, increasing their flow rate by 80% without destroying the battery's structure.
From the abstract
Polycrystalline solid-state ionic conductors (PolySSICs) are key energy materials for all-solid-state Li-ion batteries (LIBs). However, achieving room-temperature ionic conductivity comparable to that of liquid electrolytes ($\sigma \sim 10^{-2}-10\,\mathrm{S\cdot cm^{-1}}$) remains a major challenge. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that thermal neutron irradiation provides an effective strategy for engineering ion transport in a model PolySSIC, LiBO$_2$, a promising electrode coating materi