Themed collection 2026 Frontier and Perspective articles

The concept of aliovalent substitution in metal–organic frameworks is critically analysed, emphasising literature examples that demonstrate the effective formation of a solid solution and clarify the nature of the charge compensation mechanism.

Reticular frameworks, including MOFs and coordination polymers, enable food spoilage detection by sensing volatile and biogenic amines through chromogenic and fluorogenic pathways.

This perspective discusses the applications of Schiff base metal complexes in Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) and Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs) with special emphasis on structural modifications and performance tunability.

Atomic scale modeling has been utilized to investigate the interface-controlled phenomena in SSBs, with a focus on LiPON–Li metal interfaces. Interfacial reactions and stability are studied to resolve solid state batteries' interfacial challenges.

Light alkanes (LA), as strong greenhouse gases and atmospheric pollutants, pose a significant challenge for efficient removal at low temperatures in environmental catalysis.

Machine learning in MOF research is reviewed, covering databases, synthesis prediction, drug loading, gas adsorption, and disease diagnosis, along with key challenges and limitations.

Nitrenes and heavier pnictinidenes, once viewed as transient intermediates, are now isolable and stable under ambient conditions. This perspective briefly reviews their recent synthetic advances and unusual bonding in the condensed phase.

This review systematically outlines advances in Bi³⁺-based red/NIR phosphors, covering mechanisms, design strategies, and applications, while proposing current challenges and future prospects to guide material development.

We here summarize the recent advances in selective catalytic reduction of nitroarenes to various N-containing compounds, which are commonly conducted by optimizing the electronic structures and the surface chemistry of the metal-based catalysts.

Bacterial infections are exacerbated by antibiotic resistance and biofilm formation, posing a serious threat to global health.

Neuroglobin (Ngb) is a stable heme globin and possesses a tunable disulfide bond of Cys46–Cys55, making it an ideal protein scaffold for the rational design of artificial metalloenzymes (ArMs) with diverse functions and potential applications.

This review focuses on various synthesis methods for Fe₃O₄-based MNPs, along with details of coagulation mechanisms, including surface charge interactions, flocculation/bridging, and magnetic separation, for the removal of water contaminants.

This perspective summarizes recent advances in the molecular design of Pt(II) and Ir(III) complexes for the detection of picric acid in different solvent systems.

Mechanisms for inducing and tuning the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction in van der Waals heterostructures.

This review summarizes recent advances in nano-photosensitizers and their applications in photodynamic therapy, multimodal combined therapies, nanocarriers and smart photosensitizers.

This Perspective article reviews the current knowledge regarding the interaction of actinide elements with biomolecules, particularly amino acids, peptides, and proteins.

The design of a Zn-alloy anode involves element doping, interface charge transfer regulation, structure optimization, and more.

Copper-based electrocatalysts for CO₂ electroreduction to value-added chemicals are reviewed, focusing on structural engineering strategies to enhance performance.

This perspective marks the prevailing challenges in current 2D LDH research and offers guidance for the future design of advanced 2D LDH energy materials with desired functionality for sustainable energy solutions.

This comprehensive review divulges recent advancements in the synthesis, characterization, X-ray structure, supramolecular contacts, and applications of supramolecular spodium-bonded Zn/Cd complexes with N/O/S-donor ligands.

In this review the development of AEMWE catalyst materials is discussed, with the knowledge of pilot-scale single-stack electrolyzers. The current challenges and their solutions are discussed for scaling from pilot to industrial deployment.

This graph outlines key semiconductor metal oxide gas sensor tech: materials (ZnO, SnO₂, TiO₂), ML (CNN, KNN, SVM), μheater fab (bulk Si, SOI, floating), photoactivation (UV/vis).

This review comprehensively concludes these strategies to enhance the pyrocatalysis, including increasing polarization strength, modulating microstructure, optimizing surface and interface regulation and building the multicatalytic synergy.

This review focuses on the molecular design strategies, photophysical and chiroptical properties, and applications of chiral phosphorescent manganese(II) complexes, and discusses the recent progress, challenges and outlook in this area.

This article describes the recent advances in the organometallic chemistry of beryllium spanning various oxidations states.

This review elaborates on strategies for enhanced chemodynamic therapy (CDT). These strategies encompass the utilization of endogenous regulators within the tumor microenvironment and the integration of CDT with other therapies.

This frontier article provides an overview of the chemistry of hybrid phosphines combining phosphine and isocyanide moieties in their molecules, focusing particularly on the synthesis, coordination behaviour and reactivity of these compounds.

This frontier article integrates synthesis strategies with structure–activity insights, advancing the rational development of multifunctional POM electrocatalysts for sustainable energy.