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The presence of the acidic and weak ionic conductor polystyrenesulfonate (PSS) in poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene:PSS (PEDOT:PSS) leads to degradation and limits the charge transfer within quantum dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs). Two-step solvent treatment resulted in a 40% reduction of PSS, which could be attributed to ethylene glycol (EG) attenuating the ionic interactions between PSS and PEDOT via interacting with PSS through hydrogen bonding. Methanol dissolved the predominant PSS and EG from the surface. The redshift of the peak representing the symmetrical vibration of Cα═Cβ in the Raman spectrum confirmed the conformation of benzoid structure to quinoid structure after the surface treatment. This conformation was attributed to the extension of the conjugation length and the reduction of the energy barrier within the PEDOT chain. This resulted in the improved conductivity and charge hopping of the PEDOT:PSS, which was also proven using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Reducing the insulating and acidic PSS improved the electroluminescence performance and extended the operational lifetime of the QLEDs. The tris(dimethylamino)phosphine-based InP QLEDs exhibited an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 6.4%, that value is comparable to those of tris(trimethylsilyl)phosphine-based QLEDs, and operational lifetime (T 50 ) of 125.6 h.

Red phosphorus (RP) with a high theoretical specific capacity (2596 mA h g -1 ) and a moderate lithiation potential (∼0.7 V vs Li + /Li) holds promise as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), which still confronts discernible challenges, including low electrical conductivity, substantial volumetric expansion of 300%, and the shuttle effect induced by soluble lithium polyphosphide (Li x PP s ). Here, S-NRP@Ti 3 C 2 T x composites were in situ prepared through a phosphorus-amine-based method, wherein S-doped red phosphorus nanoparticles (S-NRP) grew and anchored on the crumpled Ti 3 C 2 T x nanosheets via Ti-O-P bonds, constructing a three-dimensional porous structure which provides fast channels for ion and electron transport and effectively buffers the volume expansion of RP. Interestingly, based on the results of adsorption experiments of polyphosphate and DFT calculation, Ti 3 C 2 T x with abundant oxygen functional groups delivers a strong chemical adsorption effect on Li x PP s , thus suppressing the shuttle effect and reducing irreversible capacity loss. Furthermore, S-doping improved the conductivity of red phosphorus nanoparticles, facilitating Li-P redox kinetics. Hence, the S-NRP@Ti 3 C 2 T x anode demonstrates outstanding rate performance (1824 and 1090 mA h g -1 at 0.2 and 4.0 A g -1 , respectively) and superior cycling performance (1401 mAh g -1 after 500 cycles at 2.0 A g -1 ).

Organometal halide perovskite single crystals (SCs) are the most promising candidates for the next generation of radiation detection materials. However, surface defects severely affect their detection performance and limit further applications. Here, we identified the surface defect types of FAPbBr 3 SCs and employed phenethylammonium iodide (PEAI) solution to treat the crystal surface and to investigate their effects on ion migration, photoelectric performance, and X-ray detection performance. Our experimental results demonstrated that the surface defects, such as the metallic Pb and Br vacancies, can be effectively passivated by both the PEAI and the two-dimensional (2D) PEA 2 PbI 4 layers. The PEAI layer can elongate the carrier lifetime, lower the trap density, and suppress ion migration in FAPbBr 3 SCs. The 2D PEA 2 PbI 4 layer can form a dense and full surface coverage, suppress ion migration, and lower the dark current of the SCs. The X-ray sensitivity of the PEAI-passivated FAPbBr 3 SC detectors is 227.93 μCGy air -1 cm -2 , which is an order of magnitude higher than that of the pristine FAPbBr 3 SC detectors. This work demonstrates that surface treatment plays a critical role in the crystal quality and the X-ray detection performance of SCs.

Carbon molecular sieve (CMS) membranes have emerged as attractive gas membranes due to their tunable pore structure and consequently high gas separation performances. In particular, polyimides (PIs) have been considered as promising CMS precursors because of their tunable structure, superior gas separation performance, and excellent thermal and mechanical strength. In the present work, polyphosphoric acid (PPA) was employed as both cross-linker and porogen, it created pores within the PI polymeric matrix, while it also effectively acting as a cross-linker to regulate the ultramicropores of the CMS membranes, thus simultaneously improving both permeability and selectivity of the CMS membranes. By employing PI/PPA hybrid with PPA content of 5 wt % as a precursor, the obtained CMS membrane exhibited a CO 2 and He permeability of 1378.3 Barrer and 1431.4 Barrer, respectively, which was an approximately 10-fold increase compared to the precursor membrane. Under optimized conditions, the CO 2 /CH 4 and He/CH 4 selectivity of the obtained CMS membrane reached 81.5 and 89.9, respectively, which was 278% and 307% higher than that of the pristine PI membrane. In addition, the membrane exhibited good long-term stability during a one-week continuous test. This study clearly denoted PPA can be used for precisely tailoring the ultramicroporosity of CMS membranes.

Precisely controlling the spatial distributions and arrangements of metal nanoparticles (NPs) into block copolymers is of great importance for fabricating novel nanomaterials with the desired optical and electronic properties. Herein, we develop a simple yet versatile strategy to prepare organic/inorganic nanosheets formed by the coassembly of polystyrene- block -poly(4-vinylpyridine) (PS- b -P4VP) and PS tethered gold nanoparticles (AuNPs@PS) within emulsion droplets. The arrangement of the AuNPs@PS building blocks within the block copolymers (BCP)/AuNPs nanosheets can be adjusted by tuning the effective size ratio (λ eff ), which can be controlled by the core diameter of the AuNPs and the molecular weight of the PS. Furthermore, the content of the AuNPs is also another essential parameter to manipulate the structures of the nanosheets with the specific λ eff . Thus, the BCP/AuNPs hybrid nanosheets with controllable distributions and arrangements of the AuNPs were successfully prepared via tuning of λ eff and the content of AuNPs. This study provides a facile way to fabricate well-ordered hybrid nanosheets.

Carbon-based magnetic nanocomposites as promising lightweight electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorbents are expected to address critical issues caused by electromagnetic pollution. Herein, Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles embedded into a 3D N-rich porous carbon nanohoneycomb (Fe 3 O 4 @NC) were developed via the pyrolysis of an in-situ-polymerized compound of m-phenylenediamine initiated by FeCl 2 in the presence of NaCl crystals as templates. Results demonstrate that Fe 3 O 4 @NC features highly dispersed Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles into an ultrahigh specific pyridinic-N doping carbon matrix, resulting in excellent impedance matching characteristics and electromagnetic wave absorbing capability with the biggest effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of up to 7.1 GHz and the minimum reflective loss (RL min ) of up to -65.5 dB in the thin thickness of 2.5 and 2.3 mm, respectively, which also outperforms the majority of carbon-based absorbers reported. Meanwhile, its high absorption performance is further demonstrated by an ethylene propylene diene monomer wave absorbing patch filled with 8.0 wt % Fe 3 O 4 @NC, which can completely shield a 5G signal in a mobile phone. In addition, theory calculation reveals that there is a strongest dx 2 -P z orbital hybridization interaction between Fe 3 O 4 clusters and pyridinic-N dopants in the carbon network, compared with other kinds of N dopants, which can not only generate more dipoles of carbon networks but also increase net magnetic moments of Fe 3 O 4 , thereby leading to a coupling effect of efficient dielectric and magnetic losses. This work provides new insights into the precise design and synthesis of carbon-based magnetic composites with specific interface interactions and morphological effects for high-efficiency EMW absorption materials.

MXenes, represented by Ti 3 C 2 T x , have been widely studied in the electrochemical energy storage fields, including lithium-ion batteries, for their unique two-dimensional structure, tunable surface chemistry, and excellent electrical conductivity. Recently, Nb 2 CT x , as a new type of MXene, has attracted more and more attention due to its high theoretical specific capacity of 542 mAh g -1 . However, the preparation of few-layer Nb 2 CT x nanosheets with high-quality remains a challenge, which limits their research and application. In this work, high-quality few-layer Nb 2 CT x nanosheets with a large lateral size and a high conductivity of up to 500 S cm -1 were prepared by a simple HCl-LiF hydrothermal etching method, which is 2 orders of magnitude higher than that of previously reported Nb 2 CT x . Furthermore, from its aqueous ink, the viscosity-tunable organic few-layer Nb 2 CT x ink was prepared by HCl-induced flocculation and N -methyl-2-pyrrolidone treatment. When using the organic few-layer Nb 2 CT x ink as an additive-free anode of lithium-ion batteries, it showed excellent cycling performance with a reversible specific capacity of 524.0 mAh g -1 after 500 cycles at 0.5 A g -1 and 444.0 mAh g -1 after 5000 cycles at 1 A g -1 . For rate performance, a specific capacity of 159.8 mAh g -1 was obtained at a high current density of 5 A g -1 , and an excellent capacity retention rate of about 95.65% was achieved when the current density returned to 0.5 A g -1 . This work presents a simple and scalable process for the preparation of high-quality Nb 2 CT x and its aqueous/organic ink, which demonstrates important application potential as electrodes for electrochemical energy storage devices.

Layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of oppositely charged materials has been widely used as an approach to make two-dimensional (2D) nanosheet-based membranes, which often involves 2D nanosheets being alternately deposited with polymer-based polyelectrolytes to obtain an electrostabilized nanosheet-polymer structure. In this study, we hypothesized that using 2D nanosheets with matching physical properties as both polyanions and polycations may result in a more ordered nanostructure with better stability than a nanosheet-polymer structure. To compare the differences between nanosheet-nanosheet vs nanosheet-polymer structures, we assembled negatively charged molybdenum disulfide nanosheets (MoS 2 ) with either positively charged graphene oxide (PrGO) nanosheets or positively charged polymer (PDDA). Using combined measurements by ellipsometer and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation, we discovered that the swelling of MoS 2 -PrGO in ionic solutions was 60% lower than that of MoS 2 -PDDA membranes. Meanwhile, the MoS 2 -PrGO membrane retained its permeability upon drying, whereas the permeability of MoS 2 -PDDA decreased by 40% due to the restacking of MoS 2 . Overall, the MoS 2 -PrGO membrane demonstrated a better filtration performance. Additionally, our X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results and analysis on layer density revealed a clearer transition in material composition during the LbL synthesis of MoS 2 -PrGO membranes, and the X-ray diffraction pattern suggested its resemblance to an ordered, layer-stacked structure. In conclusion, the MoS 2 -PrGO membrane made with nanosheets with matching size, shape, and charge density exhibited a much more aligned stacking structure, resulting in reduced membrane swelling under high salinity solutions, controlled restacking, and improved separation performance.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a serious respiratory condition characterized by a damaged pulmonary endothelial barrier that causes protein-rich lung edema, an influx of proinflammatory cells, and treatment-resistant hypoxemia. Damage to pulmonary endothelial cells and inflammation are pivotal in ARDS development with a key role played by endothelial cell pyroptosis. Disulfiram (DSF), a drug that has long been used to treat alcohol addiction, has recently been identified as a potent inhibitor of gasdermin D (GSDMD)-induced pore formation and can thus prevent pyroptosis and inflammatory cytokine release. These findings indicate that DSF is a promising treatment for inflammatory disorders. However, addressing the challenge posed by its intrinsic physicochemical properties, which hinder intravenous administration, and effective delivery to pulmonary vascular endothelial cells are crucial. Herein, we used biocompatible liposomes incorporating a lung endothelial cell-targeted peptide (CGSPGWVRC) to produce DSF-loaded nanoparticles (DTP-LET@DSF NPs) for targeted delivery and reactive oxygen species-responsive release facilitated by the inclusion of thioketal (TK) within the liposomal structure. After intravenous administration, DTP-LET@DSF NPs exhibited excellent cytocompatibility and minor systemic toxicity, effectively inhibited pyroptosis, mitigated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ARDS, and prevented cytokine storms resulting from excessive immune reactions in ARDS mice. This study presents a straightforward nanoplatform for ARDS treatment that potentially paves the way for the clinical use of this nanomedicine.

Resistive humidity sensors are required in flexible and integrated devices. Two-dimensional MoO 3 offers a large interface area, enabling the modulation of its electrical properties over a wide range. In this study, 2D MoO 3 was synthesized via liquid-phase exfoliation for humidity-sensing tests. In terms of high sensitivity, negligible hysteresis, linearity, and stability, the humidity-sensing performance of MoO 3 is superior to those of other materials. The sensitivity reaches 9794 Ω/RH at 25 °C. The sensing mechanism of MoO 3 was investigated by using impedance spectra and voltage-current scans under different humidity levels. The results indicate that the resistance change of MoO 3 due to humidity originates from the interfacial conductance. Interfacial H 2 O adsorption induces efficient conducting paths via hydrogen bonding, decreases the potential barrier for electron transfer, and supplies additional electron states to the valence bands. In this study, electronic humidity sensing was investigated in depth, and a new perspective was proposed for electronic humidity sensing.

Despite the attractive thermoelectric properties in single crystals, the fabrication of high-performance polycrystalline SnSe by a cost-effective strategy remains challenging. In this study, we prepare the undoped SnSe ceramic with remarkable thermoelectric efficiency by the combination of a cold sintering process (CSP) and thermal annealing. The high sintering pressure during CSP induces not only highly oriented grains but also a high concentration of lattice dislocations and stacking faults, which leads to large lattice strain that can shorten the phonon relaxation time. Meanwhile, the thermal annealing breaks the highly resistive SnO x layers at grain boundaries, which improves the electrical conductivity and power factor. In addition, the grain growth during annealing further turns the broken SnO x layers into nanoparticles, which further lowers the thermal conductivity by enhanced scattering. As a result, a peak ZT of 1.3 at 890 K and a high average ZT of 0.69 are achieved in the polycrystalline SnSe, suggesting great potential in mid-temperature power generation. This work may pave the way for the mass production of SnSe-based ceramics for thermoelectric devices.

Flexible actuators have garnered significant interest in the domains of biomedical devices, human-machine interfaces, and smart wearables. However, the mechanical properties of existing materials are not sufficiently robust, and the expensive and time-consuming pretreatment process and the ambiguous high-degree-of-freedom deformation mechanism make it difficult to meet the demands of industrialized production. Hence, drawing inspiration from the adaptable movement of living organisms in the natural world, this research created and engineered a fully textile-based humidity-sensitive flexible actuator (TbHs-FA) using high-cost-effective viscose/PET fibers as raw materials. The breakthrough development in actuation performance is covered, including substantial contraction force (92.53 cN), high actuation curvature (16.78 cm -1 ), and fast response (264 cN s -1 and 46.61 cm -1 s -1 ). Additionally, the programmable stiffness system and weave structure give TbHs-FAs low hysteresis and fatigue resistance, narrowing the gap between the conceptual laboratory-scale design of existing fully textile-based humidity-sensitive flexible actuators and actual textiles. The high-degree-of-freedom and large bending deformation mechanisms are elucidated for the first time by combining microscopic mechanical structure simulation and macroscopic energy conversion analysis. The novel humidity-sensitive flexible actuator possesses strong mechanical qualities, making it suitable for applications such as flexible robots, medicinal devices, and smart wearables.

Antifouling is essential to guaranteeing the sensitivity and precision of flexible sensing interfaces. Materials and structures are the two primary strategies. However, optimizing the inherent microstructures to integrate waterproofing and sensing is rarely reported. To improve the liquid repellency of micropyramid structures, this work presents a study of the design and fabrication of T-shaped micropyramid structures. These structures are patterned uniformly and largely on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) skin by the new process of two-step magnetic induction. The waterproofing is related to the breakthrough pressure and the liquid repellency, both of which are a function of structural characteristics, D , and material properties, θ Y . At the breakthrough transition, two failure models distinguished by θ Y appear: the depinning transition and the sagging transition. Meanwhile, when considering D in practice, some models will shift and occur early. The D value regulates the transition of the material's wettability to the liquid repellency. The influence of the material's inherent nonwettability on liquid repellency diminishes as D decreases, and the transition from completely wetting liquids to super-repellents can be achieved. Experiments demonstrate that for D = 0.3 under water the resistance is approximately 142 times larger than the depth of the structure, considerably facilitating the waterproofing of conventional micropyramid arrays. This work provides a novel method for fabricating flexible T-shaped micropyramid array structures and opens a new window on flexible sensing interfaces with excellent waterproofing.

Three-dimensional (3D) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) containing additives capable of forming two-dimensional (2D) structures in neat films have attracted attention due to their ability to enhance power conversion efficiency (PCE) in combination with improved operational stability. Herein, a newly designed fluorinated ammonium salt, 2-(perfluorophenyl)ethanaminium bromide:chloride 50:50 (FEABr:Cl 50:50 ), is introduced into CsMAFAPbI 3 -based PSCs with a standard n-i-p architecture. FEABr:Cl 50:50 was used as an additive in the tin(IV) oxide (SnO 2 ) electron transporting layer (ETL) as well as a surface treatment for the perovskite film. Used in this dual way, the additive was found to passivate charge-trapping defects within the SnO 2 ETL and regulate the crystal growth of the perovskite layer. When FEABr:Cl 50:50 was deposited onto the surface of the 3D perovskite film, it formed a thin hydrophobic 2D capping layer. Adopting this dual strategy led to the perovskite film having larger grain sizes, improved quality, and overall better device performance. As a result, the best-performing device exhibited a PCE of over 23% with negligible hysteresis in an n-i-p device architecture with an area of 0.2 cm 2 . Furthermore, unencapsulated devices with the hydrophobic 2D capping layer showed improved stability compared to the control device when measured under continuous light irradiation at a maximum power point (MPP) at 80 ± 5 °C in a humid (≈50%) environment.

Nanomaterials are widely used in clinical practice. There are potential risks of body-wide infiltration due to their small size; however, the body-wide reliable risk assessment of nanoparticle infiltration is not fully studied and established. In this study, we demonstrated the size- and dose-dependent body-wide organ transcriptomic responses to calcium phosphate nanomaterials in vivo. In a mice model, a calcium phosphate nanocluster (amorphous calcium phosphate, ACP, ∼1 nm in diameter) and its crystallization product (ACP-M, ∼10 nm in diameter) in a series of doses was administrated systematically; multiorgan transcriptomics were then performed with tissues of heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, and brain to investigate the systematic effect of dose and size of nanomaterials on the whole body. The results presented gene expression trajectories correlated with the dose of the nanomaterials and tissue-specific risk effects in all detected tissues. For the dose-dependent tissue-specific risk effects, lung tissue exhibited the most significant risk signatures related to apoptosis, cell proliferation, and cell stress. The spleen showed the second most significant risk signatures associated with immune response and DNA damage. For the size-dependent tissue-specific risk effects, ACP nanomaterials could increase most of the tissue-specific risk effects of nanomaterials in multiple organs than larger calcium phosphate nanoparticles. Finally, we used the size- and dose-dependent body-wide organ transcriptomic responses/risks to nanomaterials as the standards and built up a risk prediction model to evaluate the risk of the local nanomaterials delivery. Thus, our findings could provide a size- and dose- dependent risk assessment scale of nanoparticles in the transcriptomic level. It could be useful for risk assessment of nanomaterials in the future.

Photosensitizers have emerged as cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) activators in photodynamic therapy (PDT), which induced cell apoptosis. As the major contributors to ROS and oxidative stress, mitochondria play an important role in cell apoptosis. Although there are many reports about near-infrared 4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza- s -indacene (BODIPY) as photosensitizers (PSs) for PDT, this kind of PS has rarely been used for treating mitochondrial function and choroidal neovascularization application at the same time. Herein, a novel near-infrared PS (BDP2) characterized by good water solubility, long wavelength excitation, and high ROS quantum yield has been made. Under near-infrared light irradiation, BDP2 would generate ROS with high yield, induce a mitochondrial morphology change, and trigger cell apoptosis by changing the fusion protein level. Deep investigation revealed that BDP2 can cause oxidative stress, break the balance between fusion and fission of mitochondrial dynamics protein through decreasing fusion protein MFN2 and OPA1 expression, and finally cause cell apoptosis. Due to these characteristics, the BDP2 PS was used to treat choroidal neovascularization in animal models and can inhibit neovascularization.

Effective repair and functional recovery of large peripheral nerve deficits are urgent clinical needs. A biofunctional electroactive scaffold typically acts as a "bridge" for the repair of large nerve defects. In this study, we constructed a biomimetic piezoelectric and conductive aligned polypyrrole (PPy)/polydopamine (PDA)/poly-l-lactic acid (PLLA) electrospun fibrous scaffold to improve the hydrophilicity and cellular compatibility of PLLA and restore the weakened piezoelectric effect of PDA, which is beneficial in promoting Schwann cell differentiation and dorsal root ganglion neuronal extension and alignment. The aligned PPy/PDA/PLLA fibrous scaffold bridged the sciatic nerve of Sprague-Dawley rats with a 10 mm deficit, prevented autotomy, and promoted nerve regeneration and functional recovery, thereby activating the calcium and AMP-activated protein kinase signaling pathways. Therefore, electroactive fibrous scaffolds exhibit great potential for neural tissue regeneration.

Therapeutic bioactive macromolecules hold great promise in cancer therapy, but challenges such as low encapsulation efficiency and susceptibility to inactivation during the targeted co-delivery hinder their widespread applications. Compartmentalized nano-metal-organic frameworks (nMOFs) can easily load macromolecules in the innermost layer, protect them from the outside environment, and selectively release them in the target location after stimulation, showing great potential in the co-delivery of biomacromolecules. Herein, the rationally designed (GOx + CAT)/ZIF-8@BSA TPZ /ZIF-8 (named GCZ@BTZ) nMOFs with compartmentalized structures are employed to deliver cascaded enzymes and the chemotherapeutic drug tirapazamine (TPZ)-conjugated bovine serum albumin (BSA TPZ ). Benefiting from the compartmentalized structure and protective shell, the GCZ@BTZ system is stable during blood circulation and preferentially accumulates in the tumor. Furthermore, in response to the acidic tumor environment, GCZ@BTZ effectively released the loading enzymes and BSA TPZ . Along with the tumor starvation caused by depletion of glucose, cascaded reactions could also contribute to the enhancement of tumor hypoxia, which further activated BSA TPZ -based chemotherapy. Notably, in the mouse tumor models, GCZ@BTZ treatment significantly inhibits tumor survival and metastasis. Such a compartmentalized nMOF delivery system presents a promising avenue for the efficient delivery of bioactive macromolecules.

The reduction of oil fouling in pipes and tanks is essential for the oil storage and transportation industry. In this study, a superhydrophilic/underwater superoleophobic surface (SUSS) with high wearability, weatherability, and durability was developed using a facile two-step synthesis method and used to expel fouled oil from the surface using water without a surfactant. Some typical oils, including kerosene and white oil, can be spontaneously expelled by static water; however, rapeseed oil requires motive water for expulsion because of its high affinity for the SUSS. Different occurrences can be estimated based on a correlated parameter, φ( P e ), which is calculated using an introduced dimensionless number, P e = σ L V u μ . A positive value of φ indicates the occurrence of fouled-oil expulsion by water replacement, whereas a negative value indicates no occurrence of this phenomenon. This study provides a facile strategy for the rapid cleansing of oil-fouled pipes and tanks without using a detergent, thereby lowering costs and environmental risks.

Magnetic nanospheres are becoming a promising platform for a wide range of applications in pharmacy, life science, and immunodiagnostics due to their high surface area, ease of synthesis and manipulation, fast separation, good biocompatibility, and recyclable performance. In this work, an innovative and efficient method is developed by in situ reducing and growing Ni(OH) 2 for the preparation of dendritic mesoporous nanocomposites of silica@Fe 3 O 4 /tannic acid@nickel hydroxide (dSiO 2 @Fe 3 O 4 /TA@Ni(OH) 2 ). The flower-like nanospheres have good magnetic response, large surface area, and high histidine-rich protein (His-protein) purification performance. The dSiO 2 @Fe 3 O 4 /TA@Ni(OH) 2 nanospheres were synthesized on the basis of a φ(NaSal/CTAB) of 1/1 and a mass of ferrous chloride tetrahydrate of 0.3 g, resulting in a saturation magnetization value of 48.21 emu/g, which means it can be collected within ∼1 min using a magnetic stand. Also, the BET test showed that the surface area is 92.47 m 2 /g and the pore size is ∼3.9 nm for dSiO 2 @Fe 3 O 4 /TA@Ni(OH) 2 nanocomposites. Notably, the nickel hydroxide with unique flower-like structural features enables the combination of a large number of Ni 2+ ions and His-proteins for high performance. The isolation and purification experiments of the synthesized dSiO 2 @Fe 3 O 4 /TA@Ni(OH) 2 were performed by separating His-proteins from a matrix composed of bovine hemoglobin (BHb), bovine serum albumin (BSA), and lysozyme (LYZ). The result showed that the nanospheres have a high combination capacity of ∼1880 mg/g in a rapid equilibrium time of 20 min, which was selective for the adsorption of BHb. In addition, the stability and recyclability of BHb are 80% after seven cycles. Furthermore, the nanospheres were also used to isolate His-proteins from fetal bovine serum, proving its utility. Therefore, the strategy of separating and purifying His-proteins using dSiO 2 @Fe 3 O 4 /TA@Ni(OH) 2 nanospheres is promising for practical applications.

Novel enhancement-mode organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) have been prepared by poly(3, 4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) de-doped polyethylenimine on the multi-walled carbon nanotube-modified viscose yarn. The fabricated devices exhibit low power consumption with a high transconductance of 6.7 mS, rapid response time < 2 s, and excellent cyclic stability. In addition, the device has washing durability and bending and long-term stability suitable for wearable applications. Biosensors based on enhancement-mode OECTs for the selective detection of adrenaline and uric acid (UA) are developed by using molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP)-functionalized gate electrodes. The detection limits of adrenaline and UA analysis are as low as 1 pM, with the linear ranges of 0.5 pM to 10 μM and 1 pM to 1 mM, respectively. Moreover, the sensor based on enhancement-mode transistors can efficiently amplify the current signals according to the modulation of the gate voltage. The MIP-modified biosensor has high selectivity in the presence of interferents and desirable reproducibility. Additionally, due to the wearable nature of the developed biosensor, this sensing tool has the capability of being integrated with fabrics. Therefore, it has successfully been applied in textiles for the determination of adrenaline and UA in artificial urine samples. The excellent recoveries and rsds are 90.22-109.05% and 3.97-6.94%, respectively. Ultimately, these sensitive, low-power, wearable, and dual-analyte sensors help to develop non-laboratory tools for early disease diagnosis and clinical research.

Emitters with narrowband emissions are essential to improve the color purity of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Boron difluoride (BF) derivatives have preliminarily exhibited small full width at half-maximum (FWHM) values in electroluminescent devices, which, however, still face formidable challenges in recycling triplet excitons and realizing full-color emissions covering the whole visible spectra. Here, a systematic molecular engineering on the aza-fused aromatic emitting core and peripheral substitutions is made, affording a family of full-color BF emitters spanning from blue (461 nm) to red (635 nm), with high photoluminescence quantum yields of >90% and a small FWHM of 0.12 eV. The device architectures are delicately manipulated to form effective thermally activated sensitizing emissions, first affording the highest maximum external quantum efficiency of >20% for BF-based OLEDs with negligible efficiency roll-off.

Ceramic-based composites generally have low fracture toughness, and toughening these materials without sacrificing their hardness has been a big challenge. This study presents an approach for toughening ceramic-based composites by modulating the strain partition and stress distribution in phase-boundary regions. A new concept of homogenizing the lattice strain to achieve high fracture toughness in ceramic-based composites is proposed based on the collective lattice shear of martensitic phase transformation. The strategy was demonstrated by ZrO 2 -containing WC-Co ceramic-metal composites as a prototype. The crystal planes along the WC/ZrO 2 martensitic transforming phase boundaries exhibited significantly larger and uniform lattice strains compared with conventional dislocation pile-up phase boundaries with highly localized lattice strains. The homogeneous strain and stress distributions across interfaces enabled the composite to have simultaneously high fracture toughness and hardness. The "homogenizing the lattice strain" strategy proposed in this work is applicable to a broad range of ceramic-based composites to achieve superior comprehensive mechanical properties.

Layered oxides LiNi x Co y Mn z O 2 are widely used as the main cathode material for high-energy lithium-ion batteries. Over long-term cycling, irreversible phase transformations in layered oxides usually occur along with the loss of active lithium, which directly reflects in the sharp decrease of capacity. However, it is difficult to accurately and rapidly determine lithium content in aged materials, raising extreme impediments in the direct recycling of layered oxides. Herein, we propose a facile method for quick and accurate calculation of the residual lithium content through the developed relationship of shear strain and the states of charge. Based on this recognization, a discharge capacity close to the original capacity of the pristine material is achieved in the regenerated material by combining a hydrothermal method with annealing treatment. The recycled material demonstrates a dramatic improvement in electrochemical properties, especially the high rate performance. This method not only effectively realizes the quantitative regeneration of cathode materials but also provides a possible strategy for the future development of direct regeneration.

Cancer multidrug resistance (MDR) is an important reason that results in chemotherapy failure. As a main mechanism of MDR, overexpressed P-glycoprotein (P-gp) utilizes adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to actively pump chemotherapy drugs out of cells. In addition, metabolic reprogramming of drug-resistant tumor cells (DRTCs) exacerbates the specific hypoxic microenvironment and promotes tumor metastasis and recurrence. Therefore, we propose a novel sonodynamic therapy (SDT) paradigm to induce energy metabolism disorder and drug resistance change of DRTCs. A US-controlled "Nanoenabled Energy Metabolism Jammer" (TL@HPN) is designed using perfluoropentane (PFP) adsorbing oxygen in the core, and a targeting peptide (CGNKRTR) is attached to the liposome as the delivery carrier shell to incorporate hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME) and paclitaxel (PTX). The TL@HPN with ultrasonic/photoacoustic imaging (PAI/USI) precisely controlled the release of drugs and oxygen after being triggered by ultrasound (US), which attenuated the hypoxic microenvironment. SDT boosted the reactive oxygen species (ROS) content in tumor tissues, preferentially inducing mitochondrial apoptosis and maximizing immunogenic cell death (ICD). Persistently elevated oxidative stress levels inhibited ATP production and downregulated P-gp expression by disrupting the redox balance and electron transfer of the respiratory chain. We varied the effect of TL@HPN combined with PD-1/PD-L1 to activate autoimmunity and inhibit tumor metastasis, providing a practical strategy for expanding the use of SDT-mediated tumor energy metabolism.

Developing bifunctional catalysts with good performance at a high current density for the urea oxidation reaction (UOR) and the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) can effectively relieve the severe environmental and energy pressures. Herein, amorphous NiMoO 4 decorated Ni 3 S 2 grown on nickel foam (Ni 3 S 2 -NiMoO 4 /NF) is prepared to accelerate UOR and HER. The crystalline-amorphous heterostructure could regulate the interfacial electron structure to reduce the electron density near Ni 3 S 2 for optimizing UOR and HER. The decoration of NiMoO 4 enhances its anti-poisoning ability for CO-intermediate species to show good stability at high current densities. Meanwhile, the nano-/microstructure with high hydrophilicity improves mass transfer and the accessibility of electrolyte. Driving high current densities of ±1000 mA cm -2 , it merely needs 1.38 V (UOR) and -263 mV (HER). For urea electrolysis, it can deliver 1000 mA cm -2 at 1.73 V and stably operate at 500 mA cm -2 for 120 h. Therefore, this study provides new ideas for durable urea electrolysis-assisted H 2 production.

For years, most of the advanced polycrystalline thermoelectric (TE) materials are fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) in the research field, mainly because of its high processing efficiency. However, issues like high energy consumption and an expensive apparatus have prevented the application of this strategy in industry. Herein, taking PbTe 0.94 Se 0.06 (PTS) as a typical n-type mid-temperature material, we demonstrate that the cold sintering process (CSP) can serve as a green and cost-effective technology for preparing advanced TE materials. By selecting the solvothermal precursors as liquid sintering aids, the CSP-densified PTS shows a maximum figure of merit of 0.96 at 700 K, which is on par with, if not better than, the reported similar materials prepared by SPS. This remarkable performance is ascribed to the distinct densification procedure in the CSP: (1) the ultralow temperature alleviates the precipitation of Pb, which preserves the high carrier concentration of PTS; (2) the transient liquid phase forms intimate grain boundaries comparable to the high-temperature sintered one, leading to a high carrier mobility; (3) the dissolution-precipitation process greatly restrains the coarsening of precipitates, which effectively suppresses the bipolar effect and lattice thermal conductivity due to enhanced scattering. We believe that these results can greatly encourage the application of CSP in the future development of TE materials.

Impedance-matched acoustic materials were developed to improve ultrasound penetration through the aberration layer. The traditional ultrasound layer matching material is called a couplant, which can only enhance ultrasound transmission to soft biological media such as the cartilage and muscle but cannot penetrate hard media such as the bone. Here, we propose a phase-modulated complementary acoustic metamaterial based on the principle of impedance matching, which enables ultrasound to penetrate the bone, and use the equivalent parameter technology of acoustic metamaterials for parameter design. Ultrasonic layer adjustment is performed through 3D printing and corrects bone aberrations. Several configurations were investigated through numerical simulations and experiments in non-reflecting tanks. Specifically, the bone matching layer can be optimally designed for a specific bone thickness and a specific operating frequency of the ultrasound probe, thereby amplifying the ultrasound to penetrate the matching layer and bone. The experimental and simulation results show that the proposed acoustic metamaterial can improve the transmission efficiency of ultrasound through the aberration layer.

We explored the catalytic activity and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) capacity of Cu-doped ultrasmall iron oxides with different doping ratios. Then, we screened a highly efficient ultrasmall active catalyst (UAC). Subsequently, a biodegradable magnetic nanoliposome was developed for multimodal cancer theranostics through pH-sensitive liposome coating of these UACs. Upon entering the body, the magnetic nanoliposomes significantly prolonged the metabolic time of UACs and promoted their accumulation in tumors. Then, the strong photothermal (PT) effect of the magnetic nanoliposome quickly ablated the tumor, showing promising PT therapy. Upon entering tumor cells, the magnetic nanoliposome rapidly degraded into many UACs and released chemotherapeutic drugs, contributing to chemotherapy. In addition, UACs not only catalyzed Fenton-type reaction to produce excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) but also inhibited the synthesis of endogenous GSH by inactivating glutamyl cysteine ligase, contributing to cancer ferroptosis. Furthermore, the assembly-dissociation process of UACs showed the function of magnetic relaxation switches, significantly enhancing tumor MRI signal change, achieving a more accurate diagnosis of the tumor. Therefore, this magnetic nanoliposome splits into many UACs upon drug release and regulates the tumor microenvironment to overproduce ROS for enhanced synergistic tumor theranostics, which provides a strategy for developing next-generation magnetic catalysts with biodegradability and multimodal antitumor theranostics.

A process for universal rapid demulsification by vacuum suction using an as-prepared superamphiphilic and underliquid superamphiphobic polyurethane (PU)/diatomite composite has been developed and is used to demulsify kerosene-in-water and water-in-kerosene emulsions with and without a surfactant. The results show that the demulsification rate of all the emulsions exceeds 98.5% in long-term operation, with a stable demulsification speed exceeding 0.303 L/m 2 min. When a superhydrophobic channel for separation is added, the oil/water separation efficiency exceeds 99.0%, and the final products are qualified oil and water. This attractive universal demulsification capability of PU/diatomite originates from its underliquid superamphiphobicity, which attracts a continuous phase to form a stable liquid film and thus repels dispersed phase droplets, which have a similar interaction with the surface but are much less abundant. The vacuum forces emulsion droplets into the microstructure of the PU/diatomite cake, where they are compressed, coalesce, and finally demulsified. This observed mechanism suggests a promising strategy to avoid the negative effects of oil fouling in demulsification and achieve large-scale universal continuous rapid demulsification.

Nickel (poly)sulfides have been widely studied as anodic catalysts for alkaline water electrolysis owing to their diverse morphologies, high catalytic activities in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and low cost. To utilize low-cost and high-efficiency polysulfides with industry-relevant cycling stability, we develop a Ni-rich NiS x /Ni(OH) 2 /NiOOH catalyst derived from NiS 2 /Ni 3 S 4 nanocubes. Ni-rich NiS x /Ni(OH) 2 /NiOOH shows improved OER catalytic activity (η = 374 mV@50 mA cm -2 ) and stability (0.1% voltage increase) after 65 h of a galvanostatic test at 10 mA cm -2 compared with commercial Ni/NiO and hydrothermally synthesized Ni(OH) 2 (both show η > 460 mV@50 mA cm -2 along with 4.40 and 1.92% voltage increase, respectively). A water-splitting electrolyzer based on Pt/C||AF1-HNN8-50||NiS x /Ni(OH) 2 /NiOOH exhibits a current density of 1800 mA cm -2 at 2.0 V and 500 h high-rate stability at 1000 mA cm -2 with negligible attenuation of only 0.12 mV h -1 . This work provides an understanding of truly stable species, intrinsic active phases of Ni polysulfides, their high-rate stability in a real cell, and sheds light on the development of stable chalcogenide-based anodic electrocatalysts for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE).

It is essential to synthesize a "diagnosis and therapy" integration nanocarrier for magnetic resonance imaging-guided breast cancer-targeted chemotherapy. Here, we report Fe 3 O 4 /P(NIPAM-AA-MAPEG) nanogels (MNLs) based on in situ loading of doxorubicin (DOX) by miniemulsion polymerization. Especially, propyl acrylic acid (AA) moieties were introduced to absorb DOX by electrostatic interactions and conjugated with the antibody herceptin (HER) through the amino-carboxyl coupling reaction. The size and morphology of MNLs could be adjusted by varying the polymerization parameters, such as the monomer feeding ratio, ferrofluid content, and cross-linker content. The MNLs showed superior stability in a physiological environment, but their structures were destroyed in an acidic environment to accelerate DOX release. The dissociation of the HER-DOX-MNLs accelerated the delivery of DOX and enhanced the therapeutic effects. The studies exhibited that the HER-DOX-MNLs could inhibit the tumor growth. In addition, the MNLs with a high magnetic content had the potential advantages in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of breast cancer diagnosis. The dual-targeted pH-responsive nanogels were successfully designed as a multifunctional nanocarrier for realizing HER2-positive breast cancer chemotherapy and diagnostics.

The lack of suitable cathode materials with a high capacity and good stability is a crucial problem affecting the development of aqueous Zn-ion batteries. Herein, a novel strategy for the modification of V 2 CT x through molten salt thermal treatment is proposed. In the novel route, S heteroatoms were introduced into V 2 CT x through a substitution reaction during the dissolution of Li 2 S in LiCl-KCl molten salts. Then, surface V 2 O 5 was obtained through the in situ electrochemical charging/discharging of the S-doped V 2 CT x (MS-S-V 2 CT x ) cathode. The assembled Zn/MS-S-V 2 CT x battery showed a high reversible discharge capacity of 411.3 mAh g -1 at a current density of 0.5 A g -1 , an 80% capacitance retention after long cycle stability tests at 10 A g -1 for 3000 cycles, and a high energy density of 375.5 Wh kg -1 in 2M ZnSO 4 . Density functional theory calculations demonstrate that the improved electrochemical performance of the cathode can be attributed to the introduced S heteroatoms, which considerably reduced the ion diffusion energy barrier for Zn 2+ ions and improved the stability of V 2 O 5 . This work provides a novel method to produce highly active and stable vanadium-based cathodes for aqueous Zn-ion batteries.

Selenium-heterocyclic and side-chain strategies for developing near-infrared (NIR) small fused-ring acceptors (FRAs) to further obtain short-circuit current density ( J sc ) have proven advantageous in the top-performing polymer solar cells (PSCs). Herein, a new electron-rich central selenium-containing heterocycle core (BTSe) attaching alkyl side chains with a terminal phenyl group was coupled with a difluorinated and dichlorinated electron-accepting terminal 1,1-dicyanomethylene-3-indanone (IC) to afford two types of new FRAs, BTSe-IC2F and BTSe-IC2Cl. Interestingly, in spite of the weaker intramolecular charge transfer, BTSe-IC2F shows a stronger NIR response because of the smaller bandgap ( E g opt ) up to 1.26 eV, benefiting from the stronger ordered molecular packing in comparison to BTSe-IC2Cl with an E g opt of 1.30 eV. Additionally, thermal annealing induced an evident red shift by ∼50 nm in the absorption of D18:BTSe-IC2F blend films. Such a phenomenon may be attributed to the synergistic impact of the formation of inward constriction toward the molecular backbone because of the combination of bulky side chains and fluorinated IC as well as the reduced aromaticity of the selenium heterocycle. Consequently, the thermally annealed device based on BTSe-IC2F/D18 achieves a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.3% with a high fill factor (FF) of 77.22%, which is among the highest reported PCE values for selenium-heterocyclic FRAs in binary PSCs. The improved J sc and FF values of the D18:BTSe-IC2F film are simultaneously achieved mainly because of the preferred face-on orientations, the well-balanced electron/hole mobility, and the favorable blend morphology compared to D18:BTSe-IC2Cl. This work suggests that the selenium-heterocyclic fused-ring core (with proper side chains) combined with fluorinated terminal groups is an effective strategy for obtaining highly efficient NIR-responsive FRAs.

A hybrid electrolyte comprising a high content of H 2 O for a lithium metal cell is reported. At high LiFSI salt concentration, the N -methyl- N -propyl-piperidinium bis(fluorosulfonyl) imide (PMpipFSI) electrolyte can tolerate up to 1 M H 2 O addition without sacrificing its redox stability on both lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathode and lithium metal anode. Molecular dynamics simulations revealed the underpinned mechanism that, at high salt concentrations, H 2 O molecules are embedded in the Li + , PMpip + , and FSI - bulk as a structural material with a strong solvation with Li + and are orderly distributed at the surface of both electrodes. This electrolyte eliminates the critical moisture controls required for the state-of-the-art (SOA) carbonate/LiPF 6 electrolyte, electrode, separator and cell assembly, thus significantly reducing the cost of the mass production of the batteries.

Lithium-rich manganese-based layered oxides (LLOs) are considered to be the most promising cathode materials for next-generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) for their higher reversible capacity, higher operating voltage, and lower cost compared with those of other commercially available cathode materials. However, irreversible lattice oxygen release and associated severe structural degradation that exacerbate under high temperature and deep delithiation hinder the large-scale application of LLOs. Herein, we propose a strategy to stabilize the layered lattice framework and improve the thermal stability of cobalt-free Li 1.2 Mn 0.53 Ni 0.27 O 2 by doping with 4d transition metal niobium (Nb). Detailed atomic-scale imaging, in situ characterization, and DFT simulations confirm that the induced strong Nb-O bonds stabilize the oxygen lattice framework and restrains the fracture of TM-O bonds, thereby inhibiting the release of lattice oxygen and the continuous migration of TM ions to the lithium layer during the cycle. Furthermore, Nb doping also promotes the surface rearrangement to form a Ni-enrichment layered/rocksalt heterogeneous interface to enhance surface structural stability. As a result, the Nb-doped material delivers a capacity of 181.7 mAh g -1 with retention of 85.5% after 200 cycles at 1C, extraordinary thermal stability with a capacity retention of 80.7% after 200 cycles at 50 °C, and superior rate capability.

Electrochemical catalysis offers great potential in energy and mass conversion in academy and industry. However, bubble dynamics and its influence on gas-evolving electrode systems remain ambiguous. Detailed information on the local transport process between different phases and the underlying mechanism are required for the full understanding of two-phase flow evolution and distribution. Here, we construct a three-electrode water splitting reaction system to study the bubble dynamics and system efficiency of titanium electrodes with different morphologies. The dynamics of a gas bubble at an electrode with a plate and 100-mesh, 150-mesh, and 300-mesh structures is systematically investigated with respect to applied voltage conditions. Parameters and underlying mechanisms that influence the two-phase flow evolution and electrochemical reaction performance are carefully discussed. Finally, the underlying dynamic force balance on the gas bubble is analyzed to illustrate the mechanism and experimental observations. Our study provides insights in gas-evolving electrocatalysis and offers opportunities for the design and fabrication of high-performance electrocatalytic reactors.

Amorphous nanostructures usually exhibit special and intriguing catalytic activities, and the electrochemical performance can be tuned during operation. Herein, a facile approach of the self-activation of amorphous platinum (A-Pt) nanospheres has been applied to develop a durable and efficient hydrogen electrode catalyst toward both the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR), which was in situ converted to crystalline counterparts and partially oxidized during the electrochemical cycling, leading to the self-activated enhancements of both HER and HOR activities with the decreased overpotential by 5 times and the increased hydrogen oxidation current density by 67%, respectively. Especially, in addition to 12 times higher mass activity compared to benchmark Pt/C, in situ -activated A-Pt also demonstrated a lower HER overpotential even after 20 000 cycles than Pt/C. The significantly improved catalytic performance benefits from the rapid self-reconstruction processes (crystallization and oxidation) of the amorphous Pt during electrochemical cycling. This work shows the intriguing properties of the amorphous nanostructure and provides a new idea for designing an efficient electrocatalyst by phase engineering.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have exhibited tremendous potential among the various secondary batteries benefitting from their large energy density, low expense, and enhanced security. However, the commercial use for Li-S batteries is immensely limited by the insulation of S, noticeable volume expansion from S to Li 2 S 2 /Li 2 S, and the undesired shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPs). Herein, a composite sulfur host has been prepared by in situ incorporations of cobalt nanoparticles (NPs) into nitrogen-doped mesoporous carbon spheres (Co/N-PCSs) through the composite micelle assembly strategy. The resultant functional Co/N-PCSs not only possess uniform spherical morphology with large open mesopores, high surface area, and pore volume but also have small Co NPs homogeneously inlaid into the pore walls of carbon frameworks. Both the experimental and theoretical calculation results demonstrate that the formed cobalt NPs can efficiently accelerate the lithium-ion diffusion reaction and greatly entrap the soluble intermediate LiPs. Benefiting from the well-designed structure, the Co/N-PCSs@S cathode with a S loading of 73.82 wt % delivers superior electrochemical performance, including long cycling stability (60% for the residual capacity at 1 A g -1 within 300 cycles) and excellent rate performance (∼512 mAh g -1 at 6 A g -1 ). This design strategy of implanting metal NPs in mesoporous carbon can be inspiring in energy storage applications.

An anhydrous proton conductor represents a key material for the manufacture of high-energy electrical devices. Incorporation of proton carriers into the vacancies of the porous solid provides an effective method for their preparation, but the weak or even no interactions between the ion carriers and the porous solids causing a serious leaking of ion carriers result in trade-off of long-term conductivity. In this term, we developed a host-guest supramolecular chemistry-induced strategy to assemble hydrogen bond networks along the 1D nanochannels of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) for ultrafast and anhydrous proton transfer (1.33 × 10 -2 S cm -1 at 140 °C). Solid-state NMR was applied to explore guest interaction between protic ionic liquids (PILs) and the COFs to investigate the proton transport mechanism. This work presents an excellent example of accumulation of PILs into the nanochannels of COFs for anhydrous proton conduction at high temperature, demonstrating great advantages of COFs to serve as a supramolecular host for holding/transiting ions in the solid state.

Urea electrolysis is a cost-effective method for urea-rich wastewater degradation to achieve a pollution-free environment. In this work, the Ni 3 S 2 /Ni heterostructure nanobelt arrays supported on nickel foam (Ni 3 S 2 /Ni/NF) are synthesized for accelerating the urea oxidation reaction (UOR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). It only needs ultralow potentials of 1.30 V and -54 mV to achieve the current density of ±10 mA cm -2 for UOR and HER, respectively. Meanwhile, the overall urea oxidation driven by Ni 3 S 2 /Ni/NF only needs 1.36 V to achieve 10 mA cm -2 , and it can remain at 100 mA cm -2 for 60 h without obvious activity attenuation. The superior performance could be attributed to the heterostructure between Ni 3 S 2 and Ni, which can promote electron transfer and form electron-poor Ni species to optimize urea decomposition and hydrogen production. Moreover, the nanobelt self-supported structure could expose abundant active sites. This work thus provides a feasible and cost-effective strategy for urea-rich wastewater degradation and hydrogen production.

Bioskins possess a great ability to detect and deliver external mechanical or temperature stimuli into identifiable signals such as color changes. However, the integration of visualization with simultaneous detection of multiple complex external stimuli in a single biosensor device remains a challenge. Here we propose an all-solution-processed bioinspired stretchable electronic skin with interactive color changes and four-mode sensing properties. The fabricated biosensor demonstrates sensitive responses to various stimuli including pressure, strain, voltage, and temperature. Sensing visualization is realized by color changes of the e-skin from brown to green and finally bright yellow as a response to intensified external stimuli, suggesting great application potential in military defense, healthcare monitoring, and smart bionic skin.

The isolation and detection of rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from patient peripheral blood can help early diagnosis of cancer and evaluation of therapeutic outcomes. At present, most of the available strategies for enriching CTCs face serious problems with purity due to the nonspecific interactions between the capture medium and leukocytes. Inspired by the immune evasion ability of homologous red blood cells (RBCs), we modified the tumor-targeting molecule folic acid (FA) on the surface of RBCs by hydrophobic interactions. Under the treatment of polybrene, the charges on the surface of RBCs are neutralized, which reduces the mutual repulsion force. Furthermore, RBCs treated with polyethylene also have excellent deformability, thereby enabling engineered RBCs to form a dense bionic layer on the adhesive glass slide, which can greatly inhibit the nonspecific adhesion of leukocytes. The bionic layer can achieve high-purity enrichment of tumor cells in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), and we can achieve high-activity release in plasma. The cell count showed over 80% capture efficiency and over 70% release rate, and the purity of CTCs obtained in the artificial blood sample after release was higher than 90%. The RBC bionic surface coating is notably cost-effective and highly applicable for CTC isolation in clinic practice, and thus provides new prospects for designing cell-material interfaces for advanced cell-based biomedical studies in the future.

Microfluctuations in a pH gradient create a harsh microenvironment in tumors, leaving behind the most aggressive, invasive, and drug-resistant tumor cells. Directly visualizing the spatiotemporal distribution of pH variations and accurately quantifying the dynamic acid-base changes during cancer treatment are critical to estimate prognosis and to evaluate therapeutic efficacy. However, the quantification of subtle pH variations dynamically and noninvasively remains challenging. The purpose of this study is to determine and visualize dynamic acid-base changes in solid tumors during anti-acid treatments by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using pH-sensitive nanoparticles. We report the development of pH-sensitive nanoparticles, MnO 2 @BSA, that rapidly and strongly amplify the MR contrast signal in response to the extracellular acidic environment of solid tumors. The spatiotemporal distribution and dynamic fluctuations of pH heterogeneity in NCI-H460 lung tumors were observed with MnO 2 @BSA at different time points after an anti-acid treatment with esomeprazole, which directly interferes with the acidic microenvironment of the tumor. Imaging results were validated using a pH microsensor. MRI of pH-sensitive MnO 2 @BSA nanoparticles provided direct readouts of the kinetics of pH gradient fluctuations during esomeprazole treatment. A significant MR signal reduction was observed at the 48 h time point after treatment. The manipulated extracellular pH changes detected noninvasively by MRI coincided with the extracellular pH fluctuations measured with a pH microsensor (pH 6.12-6.63). Immunofluorescence and Western blot analyses confirmed the expression of V-ATPase in NCI-H460 lung cancer cells, which could be inhibited by esomeprazole, as detected by ELISA assay. Overall, these results demonstrate that MnO 2 @BSA MRI has great potential as a noninvasive tool to accurately monitor pH fluctuations, thereby paving the way for the dynamic detection of acidic microenvironments in vivo without the need for pH microsensors.

The use of superoxide dismutase (SOD) is currently limited by its short half-life, rapid plasma clearance rate, and instability. We synthesized a small library of biofriendly amphiphilic polymers that comprise methoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(cyclohexane-1,4-diyl acetone dimethyleneketal) (mPEG-PCADK) and mPEG-poly((cyclohexane 86.7% , 1,5-pentanediol 13.3% )-1,4-diyl acetone dimethylene ketal) (PK3) for the targeted delivery of SOD. The novel polymers could self-assemble into micellar nanoparticles with favorable hydrolysis kinetics, biocompatibility, long circulation time, and inflammation-targeting effects. These materials generated a better pH-response curve and exhibited better hydrolytic kinetic behavior than PCADK and PK3. The polymers showed good biocompatibility with protein drugs and did not induce an acidic microenvironment during degradation in contrast to materials such as PEG- block -poly(lactic- co -glycolic acid) (PLGA) and PLGA. The SOD that contained reverse micelles based on mPEG2000-PCADK exhibited good circulation and inflammation-targeting properties. Pharmacodynamic results indicated exceptional antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities in a rat adjuvant-induced arthritis model and a rat peritonitis model. These results suggest that these copolymers are ideal protein carriers for targeting inflammation treatment.

As their service life increases, cement-based materials inevitably undergo microcracking and local damage. In response to this problem, this study used phacoemulsification-solvent volatilization to prepare a multifunctional sustained-release microcapsule (SFRM) with self-healing and flame-retardant characteristics. The synthesis of SFRM is based on the modification of ethyl cellulose with nano-SiO 2 particles and cross-linking with a silane coupling agent to form an organic-inorganic hybrid wall material. The epoxy resin is blended with hexaphenoxy cyclotriphosphazene (HPCTP) to form a composite core emulsion. The surface morphology, particle size distribution, core-shell composition, and thermal stability of SFRM were analyzed via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS), Malvern, Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR), and TD-DSC-DTG. It is concluded that SFRM was successfully synthesized with superior particle size distribution and thermal stability. When the ratio of SiO 2 solution and EC alcohol solution reached 1:2, the particle size distribution of the microcapsules was 30-190 μm, and the D 50 decreased to 70 μm. The core material content, slow-release performance, and flame retardancy of SFRM were measured using a UV-1800 spectrophotometer and Hartmann tubes, and the compressive and repair properties of SFRM were evaluated by uniaxial compression tests. The results demonstrate that SFRM has satisfactory slow-release and flame-retardancy properties, the LC is 67%, and the first-order kinetic model shows the best fit and conforms to the non-Fickian diffusion mechanism. The SFRM repair rate can reach approximately 61%. This is of substantial significance to the field of self-repairing cement-based materials.

Intratumoral hypoxia significantly constrains the susceptibility of solid tumors to oxygen-dependent photodynamic therapy (PDT), and effort to reverse such hypoxia has achieved limited success to date. Herein, we developed a novel engineered bacterial system capable of targeting hypoxic tumor tissues and efficiently mediating the photodynamic treatment of these tumors. For this system, we genetically engineered Escherichia coli to express catalase, after which we explored an electrostatic adsorption approach to link black phosphorus quantum dots (BPQDs) to the surface of these bacteria, thereby generating an engineered E. coli /BPQDs (EB) system. Following intravenous injection, EB was able to target hypoxic tumor tissues. Subsequent 660 nm laser irradiation drove EB to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and destroy the membranes of these bacteria, leading to the release of catalase that subsequently degrades hydrogen peroxide to yield oxygen. Increased oxygen levels alleviate intratumoral hypoxia, thereby enhancing BPQD-mediated photodynamic therapy. This system was able to efficiently kill tumor cells in vivo, exhibiting good therapeutic efficacy. In summary, this study is the first to report the utilization of engineered bacteria to facilitate PDT, and our results highlight new avenues for BPQD-mediated cancer treatment.

Temporally intermittent and spatially dispersed renewable energy sources strongly call for large-scale energy storage devices. Aqueous aluminum-ion batteries show great potential for application due to their safety and low cost. Thus far, however, the ideal full-battery configuration is beyond the scope due to shortcomings with regards to suitable anode and cathode materials. Herein, we report a pioneering aqueous aluminum-ion battery system consisting of a Prussian white cathode, 1 M Al 2 (SO 4 ) 3 aqueous electrolyte, and an organic 9,10-anthraquinone anode. The oxidation capability of the Prussian white cathode during the first charging allows for the fabrication of the full battery without pre-inserting aluminum ions, thus making the rocking-chair-type battery feasible. Importantly, the open-framework structure of the Prussian white and distinct enolization charge storage mechanism of 9,10-anthraquinone ensure fast reaction kinetics. The full battery exhibits cycling stability with a capacity retention of 89.1% over 100 cycles at 500 mA g -1 , finishing a cycle in about 10 min. This work provides a pathway for developing rechargeable aqueous aluminum-ion batteries.

The development of novel low-dimensional materials makes the metallic contact to nanostructure facing challenges. Compared to side contacts, end-bonded contacts are proposed to be more effective pathways for charge injection and extraction. However, there is a lack of up-to-date understanding regarding end-bonded contacts, especially the recently emerged high-performance field-effect transistors (FETs). Here, the end-bonded contacts in tellurium (Te) transistors are first achieved by inducing metal semiconductor alloy. The formation of Pd-Te alloy structure is confirmed by a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) in Te-nanorod-based FETs. The ultralow specific contact resistance is estimated to be 5.1 × 10 -9 Ω cm 2 by the transmission line mode. On the basis of this finding, Te FETs are shown to exhibit incredible electronic properties, metal-insulator transition, and photodetection performance. This in-depth investigation of the end-bonded contact between Pd and Te speeds up the potential application of Te nanostructure and provides a feasible method for contact engineering in advanced devices.

Our exploration of multimodal nanoprobes aims to combine photoacoustic (PA) imaging, 19 F magnetic resonance (MR), and fluorescence (FL) imaging, which offers complementary advantages such as high spatial resolution, unlimited penetration, and high sensitivity to enable more refined images for accurate tumor diagnoses. In this research, perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and indocyanine green (ICG) are encapsulated by poly(lactic- co -glycolic acid) (PLGA) for intravital 19 F MR/FL/PA tri-modal imaging-guided photothermal therapy. Then, it is coated with an A549 cancer cell membrane (AM) to fabricate versatile theranostic nanoprobes (AM-PP@ICGNPs). After systemic administration, FLI reveals time-dependent tumor homing of NPs with high sensitivity, 19 F MRI provides tumor localization of NPs without background signal interference, and PAI illustrates the detailed distribution of NPs inside the tumor with high spatial resolution. What is more, AM-PP@ICGNPs accumulated in the tumor area exhibit a prominent photothermal effect (48.4 °C) under near infrared (NIR) laser irradiation and realize an enhanced antitumor response in vivo. These benefits, in combination with the excellent biocompatibility, make AM-PP@ICGNPs a potential theranostic nanoagent for accurate tumor localization and ultimately achieve superior cancer therapy.