Soft materials, which are optically transparent and exhibit high mechanical performance, will be key materials in important research areas in our future lives, such as highly advanced medicine, soft robotics, and wearable displays. When soft materials are transparent, objects underneath the soft material can be observed by the naked eye. Additionally, because they allow light to pass through, such

Freezing and dehydration together with interfacial failure are capable of causing the functional reduction of hydrogels for sensing applications. Herein, we develop a multifunctional bilayer that consists of a mussel-inspired adhesive layer and a functionally ionic layer that is composed of sodium p-styrene sulfonate (SSS) and an ionic liquid of [BMIM]Cl. The adhesive layer enables the strong adhesion

The transfer of heat energy in organic semiconductors (OSCs) plays an important role in advancing the applications of organic electronics, especially for lifetime issues. However, compared with crystalline inorganic semiconductors, the thermal transport of OSCs is less efficient and a relevant understanding is very limited. In this contribution, we show that the heat conduction of OSCs can be enhanced

Solar cells are conventionally used to harvest energy in outer space, but they are ineffective in dark locations. Here, we show that superconducting materials – which work best in cold environments, such as those found in outer space—provide a mechanism to harvest energy that does not require light. A superconducting maglev (magnetic levitation) magnetoelectric generator (SMMG) can convert mechanical

Turbostratic layers in 2D materials have an interlayer misalignment. The lack of alignment expands the intrinsic interlayer distances and weakens the optical and electronic interactions between adjacent layers. This introduces properties distinct from those structures with well-aligned lattices and strong coupling interactions. However, direct, and rapid synthesis of turbostratic materials remains

Developing advanced electrocatalysts with exceptional two electron (2e–) selectivity, activity and stability are crucial for driving oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) to produce hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Herein, a composition engineering strategy has been adapted to flexibly regulate the intrinsic activity of amorphous nickel boride nanoarchitectures for efficient 2e– ORR by oriented reduction of Ni2+

To address urgent tasks in the treatment of advanced deep-seated tumors, a 980 nm absorbing agent with aggregation-induced emission tendency, namely TPE-BT-BBTD, which simultaneously possesses the longest absorption wavelength among all the reported AIE molecules is developed. The functionality of deep near-infrared-II fluorescence imaging (NIR-II FLI) and outstanding photothermal performance is well-tailored

A major challenge hindering the further development of all-polymer solar cells (all-PSCs) employing polymerized small-molecule acceptors is the relatively low fill factor (FF) due to the difficulty in controlling active layer morphology. The issues typically arise from oversized phase separation resulting from the thermodynamically unfavorable mixing between two macromolecular species, and disordered

Reducing particle size in supported metal catalyst to single atom level isolates the active metal sites and maximizes the atomic utilization efficiency. However, the large inter-atom distance, particularly in low-loading single atom catalyst (SAC), is not favourable for a complex reaction where two (or more) reactants have to be activated. A key question is how to control the inter-atom distances to

Polarization-resolved photodetection in a compact footprint is of great interests for ultra-miniaturized polarimeter to be used in a wide range of applications. However, states of polarization (SOP) probing in natural anisotropy materials are usually weak, limited by material's natural dichroism or diattenuation. Here, we report a twisted unipolar-barrier van der Waals heterostructure (vdWH) to construct

The shape-controlled synthesis of nanocrystals remains a hot research topic in nanotechnology. Particularly, the fabrication of one-dimensional (1D) structures such as wires, rods, belts, and tubes has been an interesting and important subject within nanoscience in the last few decades. 1D necklace-like micro/nano-structures are a sophisticated geometry that has attracted increasing attention due to

Glioblastoma (GBM) is an intractable malignancy with high recurrence and mortality. Temozolomide (TMZ) and cisplatin (CDDP) based combinational therapy shows promising potential for GBM therapy in clinical trials. However, significant challenges include limited blood-brain-barrier (BBB) penetration, poor targeting of GBM tissue/cells and systemic side effect which hinder its efficacy in GBM therapy

Metal oxides possessing distinctive physical/chemical properties due to different crystal structures and stoichiometries play a pivotal role in numerous current technologies, especially heterogeneous catalysis for production/conversion of high-valued chemicals and energy. To date, many researchers have investigated the effect of the structure and composition of these materials on their reactivity to

Multifunctional interfacial engineering on Zn anode to conquer the dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution and sluggish kinetics associated with Zn deposition is highly desirable for boosting the commercialization of aqueous zinc-ion batteries. Herein, a spontaneous construction of carbonyl-containing layer on Zn anode (Zn@ZCO) is rationally designed as an ion redistributor and functional protective interphase

It is still very urgent and challenging to simultaneously develop high-rate and long-cycle oxide cathodes for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) because of its sluggish kinetics and complex multiphase evolution during cycling. Here, we report the concept of accurately manipulating structural evolution and formulating high-performance heterostructured biphasic layered oxide cathodes by local chemistry and

The variation of vertical component distribution can significantly influence photovoltaic performance of organic solar cells (OSCs), mainly due to its impact on the exciton dissociation, and the charge carrier transport and recombination. Herein, the binary devices are fabricated via sequential deposition (SD) of D18 and L8-BO materials in a two-step process. Upon independently regulating the spin-coating

MXenes (viz., transition metal carbides, carbonitrides, and nitrides) have emerged as a new subclass of 2D materials. Due to their outstanding physicochemical and biological properties, MXenes have gained much attention in the biomedical field in recent years, including drug delivery systems, regenerative medicine, and biosensing. Additionally, the incorporation of MXenes into hydrogels has garnered

Magnetic frustration results from competing magnetic interactions and leads to unusual ground states, ranging from non-collinear magnetic orders to spin liquids (SLs), opening the path to new physics and emerging properties. We report the engineered magnetic interaction design and synthesis of the new ternary nitride MnTa2N4 with a normal spinel structure, where the magnetic cations Mn2+ occupy exclusively

The tumor extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a vital role in tumor progression and drug resistance. Previous studies have shown that breast tissue-derived matrices could be an important biomaterial to recreate the complexity of the tumor ECM. We have developed a method for decellularizing and delipidating a porcine breast tissue (TDM) compatible with hydrogel formation. The addition of gelatin methacrylamide

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are being studied and developed because of the outstanding properties of halide perovskites as photovoltaic materials and high conversion efficiencies achieved with the best PSCs. However, leaching out of lead (Pb) ions into the environment presents potential public health risks. We show that thiol-functionalized nanoparticles provide an economic way of minimizing Pb leaching

Ionogels are emerging materials for advanced electrochemical devices; however, their mechanical instability to external stresses has raised concerns about their safety. This study reports aligned bacterial nanocellulose (BC) ionogel films swelled with the model ionic liquid (IL) of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (EMImBF4) for an unprecedented combination of high stiffness and high energy