Themed collection Materials Horizons Most Popular Articles

This review summarizes the advances in the derivation of one-dimensional porous and hollow carbon nanofibers from metal–organic frameworks for energy storage and conversion.

Antigens and adjuvants are loaded onto various types of nanocarriers and presented to APCs for activation of an immune response.

Solar-driven photothermal conversion by nanostructured materials is a direct solar energy conversion process that has been used as a novel strategy to augment vaporization and catalysis performance.

This review summarizes the advantages of non-fullerene acceptors and their applications in ternary blend organic solar cells.

The state-of-the-art developments in the photocatalytic reduction of N₂ to NH₃ are presented by classifying the photocatalysts based on chemical composition. Additionally, the correlation between the modification of catalysts and their photocatalytic activity is highlighted.

Bi₂OS₂ nanosheets possess tunable anomalous layer-dependent bandgaps, derived from the synergetic effect of the quantum confinement and surface electron states.

A unique hydrophilic/hydrophobic nanoporous double layer structure was designed for efficient and stable solar water evaporation distillation.

Solar cells utilising heterojunctions between crystalline silicon and singlet fission materials are a new competitor to silicon tandem cells.

High-resolution 3D printing of intricate graphene aerogel micro-architectures with enhanced mechanical properties at decreasing densities.

A new approach to design hierarchical materials using convolutional neural networks is proposed and validated through additive manufacturing and testing.

A novel liquid-phase exfoliation of layered crystals enables the production of defect-free and high quality 2D-crystal dispersions on a large scale.

Jacobs et al. present the first observation of both fractional and integer charge transfer phases in a single OSC:dopant system.

The high pseudocapacitance contribution in boron-doped graphite sheets for anion storage is demonstrated, and then utilized to fabricate Na-ion hybrid capacitors.

Robust elemental ferroelectricity and switchable spin-textures in air-stable Te multilayers.

We demonstrate a facile route for bacteria-based fabrication of 3D-shaped, hollow nanocellulosic objects and the new horizons enabled are also explored.

Direct photoelectrochemical response of carbon dots (CDs) was attributed to a photogenerated electron-transfer process by CDs under illumination.

Mechanically triggered relaxation of metastable liquid metal is used to autonomously alter the stiffness of a polymer composite. This approach to smart responsive materials exploits distribution in thermodynamic potential to tune the response rate.

A superhydrophilic surface decorated with 2D hydrophobic water barriers is proven to be a potential platform for unidirectional liquid transport.

The first all solid state organic electrochemical transistor based upon the skin pigment melanin.

A CVD-grown high-density 3D multilayer graphene web (MGW) is used as the filler for polymer nanocomposites, delivering exceptional electrical and thermal conductivities with outstanding fracture toughness.

Liquid metal transforms into a porous structure and floats on the water surface with heating.

A fabrication technique inspired by an old Chinese calligraphy tradition is developed to fabricate organic solar cells and modules.

An unprecedented responsive mechanism in a single-layered PVDF film is reported, in which a responsive shape change is driven by the anisotropy of crystal phases.

The optimum Mg₃Sb₂–Mg₃Bi₂ alloy composition for thermoelectrics is modeled by analyzing transport properties and understanding changes in the electronic structure.

The hairy Co/CoP–HNC derived from common MOFs exhibits excellent tri-functional catalytic activity for ORR, OER, and HER in an alkaline solution.

Rationally designed meta-implants were found to create compression along both of their contact lines with the surrounding bone, thereby decreasing the chance of bone–implant interface failure (Hoffman's criterion) and wear particle-induced osteolysis, and improving bone ingrowth.

A three-component nanocapsule-based system allows monitoring the health cycle of coatings via autonomous visual highlighting of damages and reversible erasing through healing.