Samarium hexaboride (SmB6) nanobelts are believed as better platforms to study the interaction between strongly correlated electron states and topological states than their bulk topological Kondo insulator (TKI) counterparts because they have more abundant surface states. To date, there are few reports focused on the modulation of surface transport behaviors of SmB6 nanobelts because of the absence

Tremendous efforts have been dedicated to developing sustainable and affordable ion exchange membranes for flow batteries. Challenges remain in terms of high cost, low coulombic efficiency caused by the crossover of active species, and stability. Inspired by the highly hydrophilic and interconnected 3D networks of nanofibers of bacterial cellulose (BC), an unprecedented ion exchange membrane possessing

Forming heterojunctions is a traditional approach to improving the performance of semiconducting nanomaterials. However, using a biological nanostructure to achieve such a goal has rarely been studied. Here we showcase a novel biohybrid junction comprising a functional nanobiomaterial (bacteriophage) and a semiconductor nanomaterial (perovskite quantum dots). We found that M13 bacteriophage, genetically

Oxide-derived copper (Cu) catalysts often show significantly improved performance for carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction reactions compared with metallic Cu. In this article, we summarize the recently reported methods for preparing oxide-derived Cu catalysts and discuss the current understanding of the reaction mechanisms, including the role of mixed oxidation states of copper, subsurface oxygen, local

Although existing energy storage devices (ESDs) that are prepared by traditional technologies can meet the demands of many application scenarios in our life, there are still many special application scenarios that cannot be implemented, such as flexible devices, wearable devices, and structural devices. Three-dimensional (3D) printing, an advanced technology that can realize rapid production of structural

With the further development of Moore’s law, the process nodes of integrated circuit have reached 7 nm or even smaller size. In addition to the significant increase in cost, when the scale continues to shrink, there will inevitably be short channel effect. For example, because of tunneling and reduction in the separation of drain and barrier, the channel will be difficult to be completely turned off

Microscopic imaging providing the real-space information of matter, plays an important role for understanding the correlations between structure and properties in the field of materials science. For the microscopic images of different kinds of objects at different scales, it is a time-consuming task to retrieve useful information on morphology, size, distribution, intensity etc. Alternatively, deep

Room-temperature ferromagnetic materials with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy are widely sought after for spintronics, magnetic data storage devices, and stochastic computing. To address this need, a new Fe-BaTiO3 vertically aligned nanocomposite (VAN) has been fabricated—combining both the strong room-temperature ferromagnetic properties of Fe nanopillars and the strong room-temperature ferroelectric

As the foremost semiconductor, silicon (Si) is the ‘lifeblood’ of the modern microelectronics and optoelectronics industries. The development of Si infrared (IR) photodetectors is of great significance for Si-based optoelectronic integration and communication. The use of black Si, which can extend the absorption edge of the Si bandgap to IR wavelengths below the bandgap, is a promising strategy to

High-dense garnet electrolytes have sufficient mechanical strength and ion transference number of unity, through which blocking of Li penetration is expected. Nevertheless, the situation of Li growth through the solid garnet electrolyte is even worse than that in the case of liquid electrolyte. Many investigations have been carried out in terms of mechanism analysis and solution exploration. In this

Two-dimensional (2D) material nanosheets have been widely investigated for gas separation due to their atomic thick layered structures. For 2D nanosheet, there mainly are two transport paths for the gas: (1) the pores in the nanosheet plane; and (2) the nanoslits constructed by layer-stacked nanosheets. The in-plane pores separate the gases by size-exclusion or functional groups on the pores. The 2D

Achieving higher energy density is a very important target for the next-generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), which requires the innovation of electrode materials. Using multi-electron reaction electrodes for higher capacity is an effective approach to achieve the goal for higher energy density. Vanadium-based materials are an important group that can realize multi-electron reactions because of

Electrical energy storage (EES) exploiting secondary battery technologies is ideal for large-scale energy storage needs due to the rapid growth in proliferation of renewable energy sources and the emerging markets of grid-scale battery applications. Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), a more sustainable EES option alternative to lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), have attracted intensive interests over the past

Metals/metal hydrides have attracted much attention for hydrogen storage and sensing owing to their excellent ability to store hydrogen. The nanomodification strategy has a remarkable effect on the improvement of hydrogen storage and sensing properties. Herein, the nanomodification strategy mainly includes nanoconfinement for metal hydrides, nanosized metals/metal hydrides, and nanoadditives for metal

Batteries have been used in various biomedical devices, such as neurostimulators, cardiac pacemakers, and implantable cardiac defibrillators. Compared to applications in electronics and electric vehicles, those implantable batteries need to be extremely safe and stable as they are placed inside human bodies to play a vital role in curing human diseases. They also need to have high energy density to

Taming the ultrathin nanomaterials with the desired stability and functionality is one of the challenges of chemistry and materials science. Developing a detachable smart ’invisibility suit’ may represent an attractive strategy for coping with this dilemma. Here, a protection-deprotection strategy for ultrathin nanomaterials of hydrogen-bonded organic frameworks (HOFs), by putting on and taking off

In this work, we designed and fabricated a simple and convenient Au nanoparticle/graphene/Au nanoparticle (AuNP/G/AuNP) flexible ‘sandwich’ substrate on the surface of the polyethylene (PE) film through self-assembly. The coupling effect between the AuNPs enables this substrate to strongly enhance the local electromagnetic field, and graphene can also provide additional chemical improvement. Experimental

Industrial separations belong to some of the most energy-intensive technological processes because of the reliance on heat-consuming unit operations involving a phase change, such as distillation. Membrane technology promises large cuts to those energy needs; however, its progression is hindered as currently available membranes lack separation performance as well as chemical and mechanical stability

With advantages of high hydrogen capacity, excellent reversibility, and low cost, magnesium hydride (MgH2) has been considered as one of the most promising candidates for solid-state hydrogen storage. However, the practical use of MgH2 as a hydrogen storage medium still needs to overcome great barriers both in the thermodynamics and kinetics. In this respect, nanotechnology plays an important role

A biocellular transistor transduces the biochemical activity of an interfaced cell into an electrical signal. Interfacial coupling of microcellular species with semiconducting nanomaterials in a cellular nano-transistor enables the confinement of transduced charge-carriers to one or two dimensions and at the bio/nano-interface, resulting in a highly sensitive change in carrier density. In contrast

Semiconductor nanowires have demonstrated exciting properties for nanophotonics, sensors, energy technologies, and end-of-roadmap and beyond-roadmap electronic devices. Fabrication schemes for nanowires are varied, but they fall into three general categories: (1) top-down lithographic patterning and etching of bulk crystals and epitaxial films; (2) bottom-up, locally catalyzed crystal growth of nanowires;

The conventional von-Neumann computing architecture is facing challenges including the heat wall, the memory wall, and the end of Moore’s law, which become even more severe in today’s era of big-data. Therefore, researchers are committed to exploit a new computing paradigm to address these issues and satisfy our ever-growing appetite for data and information. Inspired by our brain, new-concept synaptic

The pursuit for high-efficiency energy utilization stimulates for rapid development of electrochemical storage techniques. While the energy density demand is elevated, the safety consideration has stepped onto a new height. Hence, these two aspects gain much attention in the evolution of electrochemical energy storage. Correspondingly, the electrodes and electrolytes need special design to achieve

Metal nanoparticles (NPs) can be encapsulated into zeolites to prepare active catalysts. However, when using conventional encapsulation methods, the location of metal NPs cannot be controlled, which limits the dispersion of metal precursors. Here, we report a new strategy for the encapsulation of Pd NPs into an MWW zeolite during its 2D-to-3D transformation by introducing diethylenediamine palladium

Upconversion nanoparticles exhibit ordinary emission brightness for the existence of non-radiative transition induced by the surface defects, which fundamentally limits their promising applications. Here, a reconstruction process to rule out the amorphous layer and defects related to the surface of the as-synthesized particles is achieved with the use of 980-nm continuous laser irradiation. More importantly

The development of earth-abundant and durable electrocatalyts with high activity is important to realize efficient overall water splitting. Herein, we report the design and fabrication of a bifunctional catalyst of NiCoP nanopeapods embedded in carbon nanotube arrays (NiCoP nanopeapods/CNTs) for overall water splitting. The unique nanopeapods structure and synergistic effect between the bimetallic

Lowering the thermodynamic and kinetic barriers for dehydrogenation of high-capacity hydrides has been a key challenge for the realization of practical hydrogen energy. One of the most efficient strategies is doping hydrides with catalysis while nanosizing the composites. Although numerous catalytic additives have been investigated, more efficient dopants are still under exploration, and the underling

Plasmonic metals, such as Cu and Al, have been considered as potential low-loss alternatives for Au and Ag for photonic structures and devices. However, challenges remain in the fabrication and applications of Cu nanostructures, because of its easy oxidation issues. In this work, a new metamaterial structure of plasmonic Cu nanostructures embedded in a dielectric ZnO matrix has been designed and successfully

Self-powered wearable monitoring systems are considered to be one of the key technologies in the next generation of smart health monitoring system. To realize personal portable devices with mobile electronics applications, wearable monitoring systems that can work sustainably and continuously without an external power supply are highly desired. In this article, the recent progress and advantages of

Owing to atomically thin structure and high-activity surface, two-dimensional (2D) non-layered materials exhibit many intriguing properties, rendering them a bright application prospect in high-performance and functional devices. Recently, great progress have been achieved in the synthesis and applications of 2D non-layered materials. Therefore, in this review, the recent advances of 2D non-layered

Solid-state battery has been widely accepted as the next-generation energy-storage technology because of its better safety and potentially higher energy density. Solid electrolyte plays the most critical role in its performance, among which sulfides show the highest lithium-ion conductivities. To realize the mass production and practical application of sulfide-based electrolytes and all-solid-state

Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) are regarded as one of the most promising candidates for next-generation energy storage. However, the inherent challenges of Li metal anode, such as uncontrollable dendrite growth, unstable Li/electrolyte interfaces, and infinite volume changes, induce severe safety hazards and inferior cyclic stability, dragging the LMBs still inviable currently. Natural materials have

In the present work, a novel NiCoO2 nanoparticle/amorphous carbon composite was synthesized through an intercalation-calcination process under very mild reaction conditions (400 °C, without high vacuum). The NiCoO2/C composite possesses a unique 3D interconnecting petal-like architecture, together with appropriate compositing of NiCoO2 nanoparticles. The distinctive nanostructure endows a high specific

Perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells have reached certified efficiencies of 28% (on 1 cm2 by Oxford PV) in just about 4 years, mostly driven by the optimized design in the perovskite top cell and crystalline silicon (c-Si) bottom cell. In this review, we focus on the structural adjustment of the bottom cell based on the structural evolution of monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells to improve

Redox flow batteries (RFBs) have gained intensive attention and are regarded as the ideal choice for large-scale energy storage owing to their attractive features such as excellent electrochemical reversibility, long life, high efficiency, and decoupling of energy and power density. Ion-exchange membranes in the flow battery act as a physical barrier to separate the positive and negative half-cell

In situ transition electron microscopy (TEM) with its high-resolution imaging and analytic capability is playing an essential role in characterization and manipulation of nanoscale devices. This review article focuses on the application of in situ TEM in a wide range of advanced electronic devices for both fundamental physics study and real-time manipulation. These devices include transistors and non-volatile

Soft and stretchable biosensors have recently gained considerable attention owing to their unique capability of seamless integration with the intrinsically soft and curvilinear biological tissues for wearable/implantable health monitoring remotely. In this review, we aim to focus on surveying the recent achievements in monitoring key biological health vital markers including glucose, lactate, and cationic

The amount and kinetics of intercalation and extraction of electrons and ions in electrodes is critical for high-performance Li-ion batteries (LIBs), which are rather complicated involving tight interactions of both electrochemistry and mechanics. These coupled electro-chemo-mechanical behaviors could substantially influence the number and kinetics of transferred ions and electrons and ultimately affect

Control of spontaneous emission is crucial to quantum optics and optical devices. It is essential for diverse applications ranging from miniature lasers, light-emitting diodes, and quantum information to solar energy harvesting. Photonic crystals (PCs) have the capacity to optimize the emission properties of active materials which provide an efficient strategy to construct highly efficient lighting

Layered materials, represented by graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides, have aroused significant research interest with the intriguing physical phenomena behind and enormous nanoscale device applications. Here, we report two types of novel modulated Bi-based layered supercell (LSC) structures via combined experimental and first-principles investigation. These two types of oxide-based LSC structures

An effective cation exchange strategy is developed to synthesize highly dispersed palladium (Pd) nanoparticle (NP)–embedded mesoporous TiO2 nanospheres enriched with oxygen vacancies aiming at overcoming the specific service condition and stability limitations of supported metal electrocatalysts. This strategy involves embedding Pd2+ cation into the interlayer of sodium titanate sheets through cation

The explosive development of lead halide perovskite (LHP) nanocrystals (NCs)/quantum dots (QDs) in light-emitting diodes (LEDs) has been witnessed in the past years, because of the direct bandgap, narrow bandwidth, tunable bandgaps, long charge diffusion length, and high carrier mobility. Doping perovskite ABX3 with targeted ions could tune the crystalline structure, electronic structure, luminescence

Namib Desert beetles (Stenocara sp.) are featured with superior fog-harvesting abilities attributing to the hydrophilic-hydrophobic patterned surfaces, where water is captured by the hydrophilic patterns and then transported by the hydrophobic areas to feed themselves with the collected water resource. In this review, inspired by the special structures on Namib Desert beetles, the recent developments

As to the increasing demands for the light materials in weight-sensitive fields, scandium (Sc) is arguably known as one of the most attractive and effective microalloying elements to develop high-performance aluminum-based alloys applied at elevated temperature. This report exemplifies how the Sc microalloying effect can be fully utilized to seek for the synergetic stabilization between dual precipitates