Driven by the major demands for high-performance energy storage in civil and special fields such as new power system energy storage, new energy equipment, high-end electronic devices and pulsed power systems, our group focuses on dielectric ceramic energy storage materials and devices. Through composition design, microstructure regulation and process optimization, we aim to develop a new generation of dielectric ceramics with high energy storage density, high efficiency, superior thermal stability and excellent power characteristics, and break the core bottleneck that traditional dielectric materials fail to achieve simultaneous improvement of energy storage density and efficiency.
Targeting ferroelectric, antiferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric material systems, we systematically explore the design of composite perovskite structures, construction of local heterogeneous configurations and multi-layer/gradient composite strategies. Precise regulation methods for polarization behaviors from lattice scale to domain structure are established. The synergistic effect of enhanced polarization and elevated breakdown field strength greatly improves the energy storage performance of the materials. Adopting material genome engineering and machine learning-assisted research paradigms, we construct a multi-dimensional correlation model of composition-structure-performance. Combined with advanced approaches including atomic-scale microscopic analysis, in-situ electrical characterization and phase-field simulation, the microscopic physical mechanisms and failure mechanisms of energy storage performance are thoroughly elucidated.
Based on fundamental research advances, our group promotes the engineering development and device integration of high-performance energy storage capacitors. By optimizing ceramic slurry formulation, tape casting and co-firing processes, a series of prototype multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) have been fabricated. New-type devices such as film capacitors and composite dielectric substrates are also investigated. Our research covers the complete technical chain from powder synthesis and dielectric sheet preparation to electrode integration and device packaging, forming a full-process regulation capability across materials, processes, devices and performances. A variety of dielectric ceramic energy storage materials and devices featuring high energy density, high efficiency, outstanding stability and strong environmental adaptability have been successfully developed. The research achievements provide essential material foundations and core technical support for the independent development of high-end energy storage capacitors, as well as the miniaturization and high efficiency of power electronic equipment.
Publications:
1、Weichen Zhao, Diming Xu*, Da Li, Max Avdeev, Hongmei Jing, Mengkang Xu, Yan Guo, Dier Shi, Tao Zhou, Wenfeng Liu, Dong Wang*, Di Zhou*,Broad-high operating temperature range and enhanced energy storage performances in lead-free ferroelectrics, Nature Communications, 2023, 14:5725.
2、Weichen Zhao, Zhaobo Liu, Diming Xu*, Ge Wang, Da Li, Jinnan Liu, Zhentao Wang, Yan Guo, Jiajia Ren, Tao Zhou*, Lixia Pang, Hongwei Yang, Wenfeng Liu*, Houbin Huang*, Di Zhou*, Advanced stability and energy storage capacity in hierarchically engineered Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3-based multilayer capacitors, Nature Communications, 2025, 16, 6549.
3、Zhaochen Xi, Zhentao Wang, Changqing Guo, Ke Xu, Weichen Zhao, Zhengqiao Li, Jian Bao, Haowei Zhou, Cong Zou, Houbing Huang* and Di Zhou*, Active learning optimization in latent spaces accelerates inverse design of ferroelectric ceramics for energy storage, Nature Communications, 2026, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-70792-7.
4、Da Li, Diming Xu,* Weichen Zhao, Max Avdeev, Hongmei Jing, Yan Guo, Tao Zhou, Wenfeng Liu, Dong Wang* and Di Zhou*, A high-temperature performing and near-zero energy loss lead-free ceramic capacitor, Energy & Environmental Science, 2023,16, 4511-4521.
5、Zhentao Wang, Da Li, Wenyuan Liu, Liqiang He*, Diming Xu*, Jinnan Liu, Jiajia Ren, Xin Wang, Yang Liu, Guoqiang He, Jian Bao, Zhen Fang, Guiwei Yan, Xu Liang, Tao Zhou, Weichen Zhao*, Wenfeng Liu, Dong Wang* and Di Zhou,* Ultra-high energy storage in lead-free NaNbO3-based relaxor ceramics with directional slush-like polar structures design, Nature Communications, 2025, 16, 2892.