Themed collection Nanoscale 2025 Emerging Investigators

Polymeric nanoparticles represent an innovative approach to drug delivery, particularly for addressing complex diseases like cancer.

External strategies such as electrode design, stress/heat transfer improvements, microstructure optimization, and multifunctional synergy show great potential for improving sensing performance of PVDF-based sensors. Images reproduced with permission, full details in paper.

The increasing demand for sustainable solutions to address environmental and energy challenges has driven the development of advanced materials. This paper highlights recent advancements in the development of sustainable nanofibrous membranes.

The dual role of ROS in liver diseases, and the potential of nanomaterials with catalytic activity for therapeutic applications are examined.

This review provides a comprehensive overview of recent biomedical applications of upconversion nanomaterials specifically within the near-infrared two-region (NIR-II) window (1000–1700 nm).

The emerging integrated power supplies for self-powered bioelectronic devices over the past few years are summarized. Additionally, the challenges and future perspectives in self-powered device design and manufacturing are also indicated.

Lithium metal is considered one of the most promising anode materials for lithium batteries due to its high theoretical specific capacity (3860 mA h g⁻¹) and low redox potential (−3.04 V).

This minireview highlights recent progress in BHJ-based photoelectrochemical cells and photocatalysts for solar-to-chemical conversions.

Guidelines for tailored enzyme-induced electrospun nanofiber immobilization techniques: aligning fabrication methods with future application requirements.

This review involves advances in the mechanics of 2D materials, including measurement methods, sample transfer, materials design, and mechanisms covering the impact of defects and thickness for highly-bendable 2D materials.

In this review, we present the recent progress on transition metal dichalcogenide-based composites, including their typical categories, key fabrication strategies, and transformative roles in the field of cancer therapy.

This review provides an overview of linear, circular, and full-Stokes photodetectors, discussing how to simplify their design from complex to simple. Images by permission of: RSC 2021, WLY 2023, Optica Publishing Group 2016 and ACS 2020.

This review highlights the advantages of non-annealing synthesis, emphasizing the importance of in situ characterization, multi-level simulations and machine learning to accelerate photo-/thermocatalytic research in nanoscale high-entropy alloys.

This review systematically describes the preparation of poly(amino acids) and peptides, and their use in drug loading for various diseases, offering insights for research and clinical applications of degradable biomedical polymers.

This comprehensive review of (K,Na)NbO₃-based perovskites explores design strategies, mechanisms, and applications in piezocatalysis and photo-piezocatalysis for sustainable environmental and energy solutions.

A comprehensive summary of patterning technologies of quantum dots for construction of color-conversion layers in full-color micro-LED displays is provided.

The state-of-art progress in single-atom tuned two-dimensional materials is reviewed to clarify the distinctive advantages in photocatalysis and present the crucial structure–activity relationship for improved performance.

This review comprehensively summarizes the recent development of flexible multifunctional electrochromic devices, including energy harvesting, energy storage, multicolor displays, and smart windows.

Nanoparticle-mediated approaches to plant genetic engineering represent key advances in agriculture, offering benefits beyond conventional techniques. This review discusses essential nanoparticle design considerations to optimize delivery efficiency.

Applications of WO_x in photochromic, electrochromic, and gasochromic materials and devices.

The burgeoning initiatives implementing self-driven 2D layered material photodetectors have been presented, heralding new avenues for the next-generation integrated and miniaturized optoelectronic industry.

The use of array micro-holes is becoming increasingly prevalent across a range of industries, including the aerospace, automotive, electronics, medical and chemical industries.

The performance of a SnSb Na-ion battery anode composed of nanolayers of Sn and Sb is reported, wherein the cycle life was significantly enhanced by the use of a high concentration electrolyte.

Fluid slip and drag reduction induced by durable slippery liquid-like surfaces (SLLSs) made from flexible polymers.

Nanoparticle-assembled interconnected PbO_1.44 hollow spheres (NAHSs) were crafted by a robust strategy of PVP-driven transformation of β-PbO₂ microspheres (MSs) combined with a self-sacrificial templating mechanism for superior lithium storage.

Triazole-based C₃N₇ nanosheets exhibit excellent photocatalytic ammonia production performance, attributed to their inherent properties of an optimised conduction band position and efficient charge separation.

CLASSIC is a label-free DNA detection platform with single-nucleotide specificity and attomolar sensitivity. This assay offers rapid and sequence-specific DNA analysis through single-strand conversion and split light-up aptamer probes.

An LiF-enriched (composition-wise) and organic/inorganic uniform-distributed (structure-wise) SEI film architecture was derived by fluorinated graphene (F-Gr) sacrificial additive to promote efficient Li-metal protection.

Bioinspired 1D helical and 2D sheet-like assemblies are combined to form a 3D homochiral assembly that allows spontaneous resolution.

Hollow carbon nitride spheres with a well-designed architecture and excellent optical properties serve as promising polymers for high-value chemical production and heavy metal treatment.

Highly luminescent Cu NCs with AIE as photodynamic antimicrobial agents were synthesized and they exhibited exceptional photodynamic bacterial inactivation in vitro, alongside effective treatment of bacteria-infected wounds in vivo.

The assembly of two-dimensional (2D) peptide materials on substrates with the control of FG small molecules

Bovine serum albumin nanoparticles synthesized via a modified desolvation method exhibit superior long-term stability in aqueous dispersion. Glucose investigated as a “green” alternative crosslinker.

pH-responsive aqueous nanoassembly from a fluorescent neutral polyester selectively targets mitochondria in cancer cells over non-cancerous cells due to positive charge gain, while similar assemblies from cationic polyesters show no such selectivity.

Hydrodynamic slip at fluid–solid interfaces plays an important role in a range of transport phenomena, including Taylor–Aris dispersion.

The image illustrates the effect of nanoparticle-treated lettuce on locusts, showing their initial avoidance, eventual feeding, and subsequent death, suggesting a potential pest control strategy.

Highly selective hydrogenation of CO of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes to unsaturated alcohols was achieved over a fluffy mesoporous Al₂O₃-supported Ag–In₂O₃ Schottky junction catalyst.

The key fabrication technologies for domestic 300 mm wafer-level RF-SOI are demonstrated for the first time. The 300 mm RF-SOI wafers with less than 3 Å Top-Si roughness and −95 dB m 2^nd harmonic distortion at 900 MHz were successfully fabricated.

We employed an encapsulation strategy and channel regulation for Ru sites to enhance the stability and activity in acetylene hydrochlorination.

We achieved green–red color-tunable luminescence by controlling the doping of Tb³⁺ and Eu³⁺ ions in Gd₁₆ clusters and attained a high relative sensitivity of up to 4.6% K⁻¹ in the as-doped Gd₁₅Tb_1−xEu_x (x = 0.8).

An immunoassay based on SERS was established using antibody magnetic beads and SERS nanotags. This method has the advantages of simple operation, high sensitivity, fast (10 minutes) detection, low cost and portability.

SECCM allows screening of facet-controlled electrodeposition of nanoparticles.

Efficient carrier transport through reducing the traps in chalcogenide quantum dots (QDs) is crucial for their application in optoelectronic devices.

The host-defense peptide cathelicidin LL37 inhibits the amyloid aggregation of human islet amyloid polypeptides by hydrophobic associations and pi–pi interactions.

This study demonstrates the development of amino-functionalized chloromethylated polystyrene (EDA@CMPS) millispheres that exhibit enhanced Cu ion adsorption in saline environments through salt-promoted protonation of amino groups.

The built-in electric field in the Mn/C₆₀ heterostructure optimized the adsorption energy of the key intermediate *NH–*NH₂ and reduced the free energy barrier for the third hydrogenation step, which enhanced the intrinsic activity of the NRR.

The electrostatic functionalization between negative-charged 1T-MoS₂ and positive-charged alkylammonium salts allows high functionalization yields while preserving the material's favorable properties.

A novel method for comparing near-field intensities of the localized surface plasmon excited by different schemes in a scanning-tunneling-microscope junction.

This study explores 2D lead iodide perovskites with varying spacer chains, comparing bulk poly-crystals, colloidal nanoplatelets, and thin films. Their optical properties mainly depend on structural distortion and the bulk-to-surface ratio.

Applying an MCMC sampling approach for global target analysis enables us to determine the contributions of multiple exciton decay via Auger recombination and the contribution of surface exciton states to the observed decay dynamics.

The luminescent properties of β-Ga₂O₃:Dy³⁺ enable the development of optical PUF tags with exceptional encoding capacity, solar-blind response, and thermal stability, making them highly effective for anti-counterfeiting and encryption applications.

Nucleation (k₁) and growth (k₂) rate constants for the polyol silver nanowire synthesis were determined for batch and millifluidic flow reactors (MFRs). The MFR rate constants are larger in magnitude and synthesize AgNWs faster than batch reactors.

In (Bi_1−xSb_x)₂Te₃ intercalated MnBi₂Te₄ multilayers, structural engineering is employed to modulate both the anomalous Hall response and magnetism.

This work elucidated the effect of TiO₂ morphology on the structure–activity properties of MnO_x/TiO₂ nanocatalysts toward developing practically feasible catalytic routes for the plastic recycling industry.

The inclusion properties of various metal ions in Ni₆(PET)₁₂ were investigated and it was found that it selectively includes gold ions.

Small-angle neutron scattering can be utilized to distinguish structural models of nanoparticles with molecular- and Å-scale differences.

An efficient emulsion separation strategy has been developed using multilayer stacked nylon meshes treated with atmospheric plasma with super-wettability.

Methylammonium-based A-site composition tuning in lead halide perovskites via post-synthetic cross-ion exchange to generate phase-stable colloidal nanocrystals of FA_xMA_1−xPbI₃ and Cs_xFA_yMA_1−x−yPbI₃ (TCPbI₃).

Two-dimensional materials and their heterostructures have significant potential for future developments in materials science and optoelectronics due to their unique properties.

Sc-NiFe-LDH catalyzed electrooxidation of HMF to FDCA, achieving the FDCA faradic efficiency and selectivity of 96.5% and 99.5%, respectively, at a current density of >600 mA cm⁻².