Method for continuous intermittent extrusion and lamination of lithium metal foil for battery electrodes

A lithium metal electrode, comprising:

• a substrate;
• and
• a plurality of thin lithium metal foil segments adhered to the substrate and separated from one another by designed gaps;
• wherein the thin lithium metal foil segments are formed by compressing discrete lithium metal regions that were deposited onto an intermediate carrier layer at predetermined intervals prior to lamination onto the substrate;
• wherein the thin lithium metal foil segments have a width and a thickness resulting from plastic deformation and elongation of the compressed discrete lithium metal regions;
• and
• wherein the designed gaps result from the predetermined intervals.

A system for manufacturing a lithium metal electrode, comprising:

• a deposition device configured to deposit lithium metal onto an intermediate carrier layer to form discrete lithium metal regions positioned at predetermined intervals along the intermediate carrier layer;
• a compression device configured to compress the discrete lithium metal regions via plastic deformation and elongation to form thin lithium metal foil segments on the intermediate carrier layer;
• and
• a lamination device configured to adhere the thin lithium metal foil segments to a substrate by passing the intermediate carrier layer, the thin lithium metal foil segments, and the substrate through the lamination device to produce a lithium metal electrode comprising a plurality of thin lithium metal foil segments adhered to the substrate and separated from one another by designed gaps resulting from the predetermined intervals.