Abstract: Exploring zinc-free anode materials is one of the effective strategies to get the zinc dendrites problem of flexible zinc ion battery (ZIB) solved. In this work, an analogous heterostructure (AHS) is constructed from the excellent MXene (Ti₃C₂T_x) and TiSe₂ nanosheets. The AHS not only possesses numerous diffusion paths and Zn²⁺ storage sites but also possesses a stable conductive network to accelerate charge transfer in the electrode. As a collaborative advantage, electrochemical measurement results show that MXene/TiSe₂ electrodes display an excellent specific capacity of 177.9 mAh g^-1 at 0.10 A g^-1 and a long-term cycling stability of 77.4 % capacity retention after 400 cycles. DFT computations further demonstrate the excellent performance of MXene/TiSe₂ electrodes including desirable electronic conductivity and low Zn²⁺ migration barriers. The assembled flexible ZIB not only delivers a good specific capacity of 42.2 μAh cm^-2 at 0.20 mA cm^-2 and a competitive energy density of 37.4 μWh cm^-2 but also exhibits excellent flexibility and thermostability. Furthermore, after 400 cycles at 0.60 A g^-1, flexible ZIB shows a capacity retention of 73.8%. This work gives a successful attempt to design 2D layered materials as Zn metal-free anode for flexible ZIB.

Key words: Flexible zinc ion battery, Analogous heterostructure, Zinc dendrite, Zinc free metal anode, MXene flakes, TiSe₂ nanosheets