Built-In Electric Field Enhanced Sodium Storage in Fe3O4/Fe Homogeneous Heterojunction Confined by N-Doped Carbon Shells

Iron oxide (Fe 3 O 4 ) has attracted significant attention as a promising anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to its natural abundance, environmental benignity, and high theoretical capacity of 926 mA h g −1 . Nevertheless, its practical application is limited by intrinsic drawbacks, including low electrical conductivity, sluggish Na⁺ diffusion kinetics, and severe volume variation during cycling, leading to rapid capacity fading and poor rate capability. To address these issues, a novel Fe 3 O 4 /Fe@N-doped carbon (Fe 3 O 4 /Fe@CN) nanostructure is rationally designed, which integrates Fe 3 O 4 /Fe homogeneous heterojunctions with a uniform nitrogen-doped carbon shell. The built-in electric field at the Fe-Fe 3 O 4 interface promotes charge redistribution and accelerates electron/ion transport, while the N-doped carbon shell enhances electrical conductivity and buffers mechanical stress during sodiation/desodiation processes. Benefiting from this synergistic structure, the Fe 3 O 4 /Fe@CN anode delivers a high reversible capacity of 336.9 mA h g −1 at 0.1 A g −1 , excellent rate capability with 244.7 mA h g −1 at 2 A g −1 , and remarkable cycling stability, retaining 76.4% capacity after 500 cycles. Furthermore, a full cell assembled with a Na 3 V 2 (PO 4 ) 3 cathode exhibits a high energy density of 112.67 Wh·kg −1 at 51.42 W·kg −1 and outstanding cycling performance. This study offers a versatile strategy to unlock the potential of Fe 3 O 4 for high-performance SIB anodes through heterojunction and interfacial engineering.