INORGANIC COATINGS IN SILICON-DOMINANT CELLS

1 . A method of forming a battery, the method comprising:

applying a substantially inorganic layer between an electrode of the battery and an adjacent component of the battery, wherein:

forming of the electrode comprises heat-treatment of the electrode, and

at least a portion of the substantially inorganic layer is formed during the heat-treatment of the electrode.

2 . (canceled)

3 . The method of claim 1 , comprising applying at least a portion of the substantially inorganic layer before or after the heat-treatment of the electrode.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the substantially inorganic layer comprises spraying the substantially inorganic layer or a substantially inorganic layer precursor.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the substantially inorganic layer comprises applying a protective film comprising the substantially inorganic layer or a substantially inorganic layer precursor.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein forming of the electrode comprises coating an electrode slurry on a substrate or a metal foil; and further comprising applying a substantially inorganic layer precursor after the coating of the electrode slurry.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the substantially inorganic layer comprises applying an inorganic layer slurry onto a top of an electrode slurry; and

wherein forming of the electrode comprises applying pyrolysis to both of the inorganic layer slurry and the electrode slurry.

8 . The method of claim 7 , comprising coextruding the inorganic layer slurry and the electrode slurry onto a substrate or a metal foil.

9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the inorganic layer slurry comprises a carbon forming precursor binder, non-carbon forming precursor binder, or no precursor binder.

10 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the inorganic layer slurry comprises a nonconductive-carbon forming precursor binder.

11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the substantially inorganic layer comprises one or more of metal oxides, metal carbonates, metal hydroxides, ceramic electrolytes, metal nitrides, metal carbides, and metal halogens.

12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the battery comprises a separator that abuts the electrode; and wherein the substantially inorganic layer is applied to one or both of the electrode and the separator.

13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the substantially inorganic layer is configured to function as a separator in the battery.

14 . The method of claim 1 , comprising applying a second substantially inorganic layer to a second electrode of the battery; wherein one or both of the substantially inorganic layer and the second substantially inorganic layer are configured to function together as a separator in the battery.

15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the electrode or a second electrode of the battery comprises a silicon-based electrode; and wherein the substantially inorganic layer is configured to account for and/or mitigate effects use of silicon in the battery.

16 . An apparatus for use in forming a battery, the apparatus comprising:

a depositor configured for applying a substantially inorganic layer to a top surface of an electrode, wherein forming of the electrode comprises heat-treatment of the electrode.

17 . The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the apparatus is configured to form the substantially inorganic layer during the heat-treatment of the electrode.

18 . The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the depositor is configured to apply the substantially inorganic layer before or after the heat-treatment of the electrode.

19 . The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the depositor is configured to spray the substantially inorganic layer on the electrode.

20 . The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the depositor is configured to apply a protective film comprising the substantially inorganic layer or substantially inorganic layer precursor onto the electrode.

21 . The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the depositor is configured to coextrude an inorganic layer slurry that comprises substantially inorganic material and an electrode slurry that comprises electrode active material onto a substrate or a metal foil.

22 . An inorganic slurry for use in forming a battery, the slurry comprising:

inorganic material, the inorganic material comprising one or more of metal oxides, metal carbonates, metal hydroxides, ceramic electrolytes, metal nitrides, metal carbides, and metal halogens;

wherein the inorganic slurry is configured for creating a substantially inorganic layer on top of an electrode of the battery, for additional safety and performance during the operation of the battery.

23 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , comprising a carbon forming precursor binder.

24 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , comprising a non-conductive-carbon forming precursor binder.

25 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , wherein the ceramic electrolytes comprise one or more of Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 (LLZO), Li 0.33 La 0.56 TiO 3 (LLTO), and lithium aluminum germanium phosphate (LAGP)

26 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , wherein the metal oxides comprise one or more of SiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 , MgO, ZrO 2 , TiO 2 , ZnO, BaTiO 3 (BTO), y-LiAlO 2 .

27 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , wherein the metal hydroxides comprise one or more of Al(OH) 3 and Mg(OH) 2 .

28 . The inorganic slurry of claim 22 , wherein the metal carbonates comprise CaCO 3 .