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<front>
<journal-meta>
<journal-id journal-id-type="doi">10.1002/(ISSN)1613-6829</journal-id>
<journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">SMLL</journal-id>
<journal-title-group>
<journal-title xml:lang="en">Small</journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher" xml:lang="en">Small</abbrev-journal-title>
</journal-title-group>
<issn publication-format="ppub">1613-6810</issn>
<issn publication-format="epub">1613-6829</issn>
</journal-meta>
<article-meta>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.1002/smll.202302015</article-id>
<article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">SMLL202302015</article-id>
<article-categories>
<subj-group subj-group-type="overline" xml:lang="en">
<subject>Research Article</subject>
</subj-group>
<subj-group subj-group-type="heading" xml:lang="en">
<subject>Research Articles</subject>
</subj-group>
</article-categories>
<title-group>
<article-title xml:lang="en">Spontaneous Internal Electric Field in Heterojunction Boosts Bifunctional Oxygen Electrocatalysts for Zinc–Air Batteries: Theory, Experiment, and Application</article-title>
</title-group>
<contrib-group>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0001" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Yao</surname>
<given-names>Yong</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0002" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Wu</surname>
<given-names>Jiexing</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0003" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Feng</surname>
<given-names>Qiaoxia</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0004" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Zeng</surname>
<given-names>Kui</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0002">
<sup>2</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0005" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Wan</surname>
<given-names>Jing</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0003">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0006" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Zhang</surname>
<given-names>Jincan</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0003">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0007" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Mao</surname>
<given-names>Boyang</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0003">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0008" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Hu</surname>
<given-names>Kui</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0004">
<sup>4</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0009" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Chen</surname>
<given-names>Liming</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0004">
<sup>4</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0010" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Zhang</surname>
<given-names>Hao</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0005">
<sup>5</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0011" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Gong</surname>
<given-names>Yi</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0006">
<sup>6</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0012" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Yang</surname>
<given-names>Kai</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0006">
<sup>6</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0013" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Zhou</surname>
<given-names>Haihui</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0014" contrib-type="author">
<name>
<surname>Huang</surname>
<given-names>Zhongyuan</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib id="smll202302015-cr-0015" contrib-type="author" corresp="yes">
<name>
<surname>Li</surname>
<given-names>Huanxin</given-names>
</name>
<contrib-id contrib-id-type="orcid">https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6169-3942</contrib-id>
<email>huanxin.li@chem.ox.ac.uk</email>
<xref ref-type="corresp" rid="correspondenceTo">*</xref>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0002">
<sup>2</sup>
</xref>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="smll202302015-aff-0003">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
</contrib-group>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0001">
<label>
<sup>1</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering</named-content>

<institution>Hunan University</institution>

<city>Changsha</city>
 <postal-code>410082</postal-code>
 <country country="CN">China</country>

</aff>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0002">
<label>
<sup>2</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Department of Chemistry</named-content>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Physical &amp; Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory</named-content>

<institution>University of Oxford</institution>

<named-content content-type="street">South Parks Road</named-content>
 <city>Oxford</city>
 <postal-code>OX1 3QZ</postal-code>
 <country country="GB">UK</country>

</aff>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0003">
<label>
<sup>3</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Department of Engineering</named-content>

<institution>University of Cambridge</institution>

<named-content content-type="street">9 JJ Thomson Avenue</named-content>
 <city>Cambridge</city>
 <postal-code>CB3 0FA</postal-code>
 <country country="GB">UK</country>

</aff>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0004">
<label>
<sup>4</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Department of Chemistry</named-content>

<institution>The University of Manchester</institution>

<named-content content-type="street">Oxford Road</named-content>
 <city>Manchester</city>
 <postal-code>M13 9PL</postal-code>
 <country country="GB">UK</country>

</aff>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0005">
<label>
<sup>5</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Chemistry Research Laboratory</named-content>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Department of Chemistry</named-content>

<institution>University of Oxford</institution>

<city>Oxford</city>
 <postal-code>OX1 3TA</postal-code>
 <country country="GB">UK</country>

</aff>
<aff id="smll202302015-aff-0006">
<label>
<sup>6</sup>
</label>

<named-content content-type="organisation-division">Advanced Technology Institute</named-content>

<institution>University of Surrey</institution>

<city>Guildford</city>
 <named-content content-type="country-part">Surrey</named-content>
 <postal-code>GU2 7XH</postal-code>
 <country country="GB">UK</country>

</aff>
<author-notes>
<corresp id="correspondenceTo"><label>*</label>E‐mail: <email>huanxin.li@chem.ox.ac.uk</email><break/></corresp>
</author-notes>
<pub-date date-type="pub" publication-format="electronic"><day>24</day>
<month>05</month>
<year>2023</year>
</pub-date><elocation-id>2302015</elocation-id>
<history>

<date date-type="rev-recd">
<day>28</day>
<month>04</month>
<year>2023</year>
</date>

<date date-type="received">
<day>08</day>
<month>03</month>
<year>2023</year>
</date>

</history>
<permissions>
<copyright-statement content-type="issue-copyright">© 2023 Wiley‐VCH GmbH</copyright-statement>
<copyright-statement content-type="article-copyright">© 2023 The Authors. Small published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH</copyright-statement>
<copyright-year>2023</copyright-year>
<copyright-holder>© 2023 The Authors. Small published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH</copyright-holder>
<license>
<ali:license_ref>http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/</ali:license_ref>
<license-p>This is an open access article under the terms of the <ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution‐NonCommercial</ext-link> License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.</license-p>
</license>
</permissions>
<abstract xml:lang="en" abstract-type="main">
<title>Abstract</title>
<p xml:lang="en">Heterojunctions are a promising class of materials for high‐efficiency bifunctional oxygen electrocatalysts in both oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, the conventional theories fail to explain why many catalysts behave differently in ORR and OER, despite a reversible path (<sup>*</sup>O<sub>2</sub>⇋<sup>*</sup>OOH⇋<sup>*</sup>O⇋<sup>*</sup>OH). This study proposes the electron‐/hole‐rich catalytic center theory (e/h‐CCT) to supplement the existing theories, it suggests that the Fermi level of catalysts determines the direction of electron transfer, which affects the direction of the oxidation/reduction reaction, and the density of states (DOS) near the Fermi level determines the accessibility for injecting electrons and holes. Additionally, heterojunctions with different Fermi levels form electron‐/hole‐rich catalytic centers near the Fermi levels to promote ORR/OER, respectively. To verify the universality of the e/h‐CCT theory, this study reveals the randomly synthesized heterostructural Fe<sub>3</sub>N‐FeN<sub>0.0324</sub> (Fe<italic>
<sub>x</sub>
</italic>
N@PC with DFT calculations and electrochemical tests. The results show that the heterostructural F<sub>3</sub>N‐FeN<sub>0.0324</sub> facilitates the catalytic activities for ORR and OER simultaneously by forming an internal electron‐/hole‐rich interface. The rechargeable ZABs with Fe<italic>
<sub>x</sub>
</italic>
N@PC cathode display a high open circuit potential of 1.504 V, high power density of 223.67 mW cm<sup>−2</sup>, high specific capacity of 766.20 mAh g<sup>−1</sup> at 5 mA cm<sup>−2</sup>, and excellent stability for over 300 h.</p>
</abstract>
<kwd-group kwd-group-type="author-generated" xml:lang="en">
<kwd id="smll202302015-kwd-0001">electron‐/hole‐rich catalytic centers</kwd>
<kwd id="smll202302015-kwd-0002">Fe<sub>3</sub>N‐FeN<sub>0.0324</sub> heterojunction</kwd>
<kwd id="smll202302015-kwd-0003">oxygen evolution reaction</kwd>
<kwd id="smll202302015-kwd-0004">oxygen reduction reaction</kwd>
<kwd id="smll202302015-kwd-0005">zinc–air batteries</kwd>
</kwd-group>
<funding-group>
<award-group id="funding-0001">
<funding-source>

<institution-wrap>
<institution>National Natural Science Foundation of China</institution>
<institution-id>http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001809</institution-id>
</institution-wrap>

</funding-source>
<award-id>51974114</award-id>
<award-id>51672075</award-id>
<award-id>21908049</award-id>
</award-group>
</funding-group>
<funding-group>
<award-group id="funding-0002">
<funding-source>

<institution-wrap>
<institution>China Postdoctoral Science Foundation</institution>
<institution-id>http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002858</institution-id>
</institution-wrap>

</funding-source>
<award-id>2020M682560</award-id>
</award-group>
</funding-group>
<funding-group>
<award-group id="funding-0003">
<funding-source>

<institution-wrap>
<institution>Science and Technology Innovation Program of Hunan Province</institution>
</institution-wrap>

</funding-source>
<award-id>2020RC2024</award-id>
</award-group>
</funding-group>
<funding-group>
<award-group id="funding-0004">
<funding-source>

<institution-wrap>
<institution>Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China</institution>
</institution-wrap>

</funding-source>
<award-id>2020JJ4175</award-id>
</award-group>
</funding-group>
<funding-group>
<award-group id="funding-0005">
<funding-source>

<institution-wrap>
<institution>International Postdoctoral Exchange Fellowship Program</institution>
</institution-wrap>

</funding-source>
<award-id>GrantNo.PC2022020</award-id>
</award-group>
</funding-group>
<counts>
<fig-count count="7"/>
<table-count count="0"/>
<page-count count="14"/>
<word-count count="9071"/>
</counts>
</article-meta>
</front>
</article>