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Room‐temperature sodium‐sulfur (RT Na‐S) batteries are promising for low‐cost and large‐scale energy storage applications. However, these batteries are plagued by safety concerns due to the highly flammable nature of conventional electrolytes. Although non‐flammable electrolytes eliminate the risk of fire, they often result in compromised battery performance due to poor compatibility with sodium metal anode and sulfur cathode. Herein, we develop an additive of tin trifluoromethanesulfonate (Sn(OTf)2) in non‐flammable phosphate electrolytes to improve the cycling stability of RT Na‐S batteries via modulating the Na+ solvation environment and interface chemistry. The additive reduces the Na+ desolvation energy and enhances the electrolyte stability. Moreover, it facilitates the construction of Na‐Sn alloy‐based anode solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) and cathode electrolyte interphase (CEI). These interphases help to suppress the growth of Na dendrites and the dissolution/shuttling of sodium polysulfides (NaPSs), resulting in improved reversible capacity. Specifically, the Na‐S battery with the designed electrolyte boosts the capacity from 322 to 906 mAh g−1 at 0.5 A g−1. This study provides valuable insights for the development of safe and high‐performance electrolytes in RT Na‐S batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eco‐friendly lead‐free organic–inorganic manganese halides (OIMHs) have attracted considerable attention in various optoelectronic applications because of their superior optical properties and flexible solution processibility. Herein, we report a novel pseudo‐2D layered OIMH (MTP)2MnBr4 (MTP: methyltriphenylphosphonium), which exhibits intense green emission under UV/blue or X‐ray excitation, with a near‐unity photoluminescence quantum yield, high resistance to thermal quenching (I150 °C=84.1 %) and good photochemical stability. These features enable (MTP)2MnBr4 as an efficient green phosphor for blue‐converted white light‐emitting diodes, demonstrating a commercial‐level luminous efficiency of 101 lm W−1 and a wide color gamut of 116 % NTSC. Moreover, these (MTP)2MnBr4 crystals showcase outstanding X‐ray scintillation properties, delivering a light yield of 67000 photon MeV−1, a detection limit of 82.4 nGy s−1, and a competitive spatial resolution of 6.2 lp mm−1 for X‐ray imaging. This work presents a new avenue for the exploration of eco‐friendly luminescent OIMHs towards multifunctional light‐emitting applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potassium–sulfur (K−S) batteries have attracted wide attention owing to their high theoretical energy density and low cost. However, the intractable shuttle effect of K polysulfides results in poor cyclability of K−S batteries, which severely limits their practical application. Herein, a bifunctional concentrated electrolyte (3 mol L−1 potassium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide in ethylene carbonate (EC)) with high ionic conductivity and low viscosity is developed to regulate the dissolution behavior of polysulfides and induce uniform K deposition. The organic groups in the cathode electrolyte interphase layer derived from EC can effectively block the polysulfide shuttle and realize a "solid–liquid–solid" reaction mechanism. The KF‐riched solid‐electrolyte interphase inhibits K dendrite growth during cycling. As a result, the achieved K−S batteries display a high reversible capacity of 654 mAh g−1 at 0.5 A g−1 after 800 cycles and a long lifespan over 2000 cycles at 1 A g−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supramolecular systems consisting of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) and Ni complex are designed for robust photocatalytic reduction of CO2. Multiple heteroatom‐hydrogen bonding between the COF and Ni complex is identified to play a decisive role in the photoexcited electron transfer across the liquid‐solid interface. The diminution of steric groups on COF or metal complex can optimize catalytic performance, which is more attributable to the enhanced hydrogen‐bond interaction rather than their intrinsic activity. The photosystem with relatively strong strength of hydrogen bonds exhibits remarkable photocatalytic CO2‐to‐CO conversion, far superior to photosystems with supported atomic Ni or metal complex alone in the absence of hydrogen‐bond effect. Such heteroatom‐hydrogen bonds bridging electron transport pathway confers supramolecular system with high photocatalytic performance, providing an avenue to rationally design efficient and steadily available photosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Room temperature sodium‐sulfur (RT Na‐S) batteries are highly competitive as potential energy storage devices. Nevertheless, their actually achieved reversible capacities are far below the theoretical value due to incomplete transformation of polysulfides. Herein, atomically dispersed Fe‐N/S active center by regulating the second‐shell coordinating environment of Fe single atom is proposed. The Fe−N4S2 coordination structure with enhanced local electronic concentration around the Fermi level is revealed via synchrotron radiation X‐ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and theoretical calculations, which can not only significantly promote the transformation kinetics of polysulfides, but induce uniform Na deposition for dendrite‐free Na anode. As a result, the obtained S cathode delivers a high initial reversible capacity of 1590 mAh g−1, nearly the theoretical value. This work opens up a new avenue to facilitate the complete transformation of polysulfides for RT Na‐S batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perovskite nanocrystals (PeNCs) deliver size‐ and composition‐tunable luminescence of high efficiency and color purity in the visible range. However, attaining efficient electroluminescence (EL) in the near‐infrared (NIR) region from PeNCs is challenging, limiting their potential applications. Here we demonstrate a highly efficient NIR light‐emitting diode (LED) by doping ytterbium ions into a PeNCs host (Yb3+ : PeNCs), extending the EL wavelengths toward 1000 nm, which is achieved through a direct sensitization of Yb3+ ions by the PeNC host. Efficient quantum‐cutting processes enable high photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQYs) of up to 126 % from the Yb3+ : PeNCs. Through halide‐composition engineering and surface passivation to improve both PLQY and charge‐transport balance, we demonstrate an efficient NIR LED with a peak external quantum efficiency of 7.7 % at a central wavelength of 990 nm, representing the most efficient perovskite‐based LEDs with emission wavelengths beyond 850 nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbonate electrolytes have excellent chemical stability and high salt solubility, which are ideally practical choice for achieving high‐energy‐density sodium (Na) metal battery at room temperature. However, their application at ultra‐low temperature (−40 °C) is adversely affected by the instability of solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formed by electrolyte decomposition and the difficulty of desolvation. Here, we designed a novel low‐temperature carbonate electrolyte by molecular engineering on solvation structure. The calculations and experimental results demonstrate that ethylene sulfate (ES) reduces the sodium ion desolvation energy and promotes the forming of more inorganic substances on the Na surface, which promote ion migration and inhibit dendrite growth. At −40 °C, the Na||Na symmetric battery exhibits a stable cycle of 1500 hours, and the Na||Na3V2(PO4)3 (NVP) battery achieves 88.2 % capacity retention after 200 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to non‐specific strong nano–bio interactions, it is difficult for nanocarriers with permanent rough surface to cross multiple biological barriers to realize efficient drug delivery. Herein, a camouflaged virus‐like‐nanocarrier with a transformable rough surface is reported, which is composed by an interior virus‐like mesoporous SiO2 nanoparticle with a rough surface (vSiO2) and an exterior acid‐responsive polymer. Under normal physiological pH condition, the spikes on vSiO2 are hidden by the polymer shell, and the non‐specific strong nano–bio interactions are effectively inhibited. While in the acidic tumor microenvironment, the nanocarrier sheds the polymer camouflage to re‐expose its rough surface. So, the retention ability and endocytosis efficiency of the nanocarrier are great improved. Owing to it's the dynamically variable rough surface, the rationally designed nanocarrier exhibits extended blood‐circulation‐time and enhanced tumor accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metallic Na is a promising metal anode for large‐scale energy storage. Nevertheless, unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) and uncontrollable Na dendrite growth lead to disastrous short circuit and poor cycle life. Through phase field and ab initio molecular dynamics simulation, we first predict that the sodium bromide (NaBr) with the lowest Na ion diffusion energy barrier among sodium halogen compounds (NaX, X=F, Cl, Br, I) is the ideal SEI composition to induce the spherical Na deposition for suppressing dendrite growth. Then, 1,2‐dibromobenzene (1,2‐DBB) additive is introduced into the common fluoroethylene carbonate‐based carbonate electrolyte (the corresponding SEI has high mechanical stability) to construct a desirable NaBr‐rich stable SEI layer. When the Na||Na3V2(PO4)3 cell utilizes the electrolyte with 1,2‐DBB additive, an extraordinary capacity retention of 94 % is achieved after 2000 cycles at a high rate of 10 C. This study provides a design philosophy for dendrite‐free Na metal anode and can be expanded to other metal anodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical recycling of polymers to their constituent monomers is the foremost challenge in building a sustainable circular plastics economy. Here, we report a strategy for highly efficient depolymerization of various CO2‐based alicyclic polycarbonates to epoxide monomers in solvent‐free conditions by a simple CrIII‐Salen complex mediated catalytic pyrolysis process. The chemical recycling of the widely studied poly(cyclohexene carbonate) exhibits excellent reactivity (TOF up to 3000 h−1, 0.1 mol % catalyst loading) and high epoxide monomer selectivity (>99 %). Mechanistic investigation reveals that the process proceeds in a sequential fashion via a trans‐carbonate intermediate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Luminescent metal halides have attracted considerable attention in next‐generation solid‐state lighting because of their superior optical properties and easy solution processibility. Herein, we report a new class of highly efficient and dual‐band‐tunable white‐light emitters based on Bi3+/Te4+ co‐doped perovskite derivative Cs2SnCl6 microcrystals. Owing to the strong electron‐phonon coupling and efficient energy transfer from Bi3+ to Te4+, the microcrystals exhibited broad dual‐band white‐light emission originating from the inter‐configurational 3P0,1→1S0 transitions of Bi3+ and Te4+, with good stability and a high photoluminescence (PL) quantum yield of up to 68.3 %. Specifically, a remarkable transition in Bi3+‐PL lifetime from milliseconds at 10 K to microseconds at 300 K was observed, as solid evidence for the isolated Bi3+ emission. These findings provide not only new insights into the excited‐state dynamics of Bi3+ and Te4+ in Cs2SnCl6, but also a general approach to achieve single‐composition white‐light emitters based on lead‐free metal halides through ns2‐metal ion co‐doping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The digestion of pathogens inside phagosomes by immune cells occurs through a sequence of reactions including acidification and proteolysis, but how the reactions are orchestrated in the right order is unclear due to a lack of methods to simultaneously measure more than one reaction in phagosomes. Here we report a bifunctional Janus‐particle probe to simultaneously monitor acidification and proteolysis in single phagosomes in live cells. Each probe consists of a pH reporter and a proteolysis reporter that are spatially separated but function concurrently. Using the Janus probes, we found the acidic pH needed to initiate and maintain proteolysis, revealing the mechanism for the sequential occurrence of both reactions during pathogen digestion. We showed how bacterium‐derived lipopolysaccharides alter the acidification and proteolysis in phagosomes. This study showcases Janus‐particle probes as a generally applicable tool for monitoring multiple reactions in intracellular vesicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of suitable anode materials is far from satisfactory and is a major scientific challenge for a competitive sodium‐ion battery technology. Metal sulfides have demonstrated encouraging results, but still suffer from sluggish kinetics and severe capacity decay associated with the phase change. Herein we show that rational electrode design, that is, building efficient electron/ion mixed‐conducting networks, can overcome the problems resulting from conversion reactions. A general strategy for the preparation of hierarchical carbon‐coated metal sulfide (MS⊂C) spheres through thermal sulfurization of metal glycerate has been developed. We demonstrate the concept by synthesizing highly uniform hierarchical carbon coated vanadium sulfide (V2S3⊂C) spheres, which exhibit a highly reversibly sodium storage capacity of 777 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1, excellent rate capability (410 mAh g−1 at 4000 mA g−1), and impressive cycling ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a strategy for using magnetic Janus microparticles to control the stimulation of T cell signaling with single-cell precision. To achieve this, we designed Janus particles that are magnetically responsive on one hemisphere and stimulatory to T cells on the other side. By manipulating the rotation and locomotion of Janus particles under an external magnetic field, we could control the orientation of the particle-cell recognition and thereby the initiation of T cell activation. This study demonstrates a step towards employing anisotropic material properties of Janus particles to control single-cell activities without the need of complex magnetic manipulation devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring reactions of methanol on TiO2 surfaces is of great importance in both C1 chemistry and photocatalysis. Reported herein is a combined experimental and theoretical calculation study of methanol adsorption and reaction on a mineral anatase TiO2(001)-(1?4) surface. The methanol-todimethyl ether (DME) reaction was unambiguously identified to occur by the dehydration coupling of methoxy species at the fourfold-coordinated Ti4+ sites (Ti4c), and for the first time confirms the predicted higher reactivity of this facet compared to other reported TiO2 facets. Surface chemistry of methanol on the anatase TiO2(001)-(1?4) surface is seldom affected by co-chemisorbed water. These results not only greatly deepen the fundamental understanding of elementary surface reactions of methanol on TiO2 surfaces but also show that TiO2 with a high density of Ti4c sites is a potentially active and selective catalyst for the important methanol-to-DME reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicon is an attractive anode material in energy storage devices, as it has a ten times higher theoretical capacity than its state-of-art carbonaceous counterpart. However, the common process to synthesize silicon nanostructured electrodes is complex, costly, and energy-intensive. Three-dimensional (3D) porous silicon-based anode materials have been fabricated from natural reed leaves by calcination and magnesiothermic reduction. This sustainable and highly abundant silica source allows for facile production of 3D porous silicon with very good electrochemical performance. The obtained silicon anode retains the 3D hierarchical architecture of the reed leaf. Impurity leaching and gas release during the fabrication process leads to an interconnected porosity and the reductive treatment to an inside carbon coating. Such anodes show a remarkable Li-ion storage performance: even after 4000 cycles and at a rate of 10 C, a specific capacity of 420 mA h g−1 is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

gem-Difluoropropargyl bromides are versatile intermediates in organic synthesis, but have rarely been employed in transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. The first palladium-catalyzed gem-difluoropropargylation of organoboron reagents with gem-difluoropropargyl bromides is now reported. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions with high regioselectivity; it features a broad substrate scope and excellent functional-group compatibility and thus provides an attractive approach for the synthesis of complex fluorinated molecules, in particular for drug discovery and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The preparation and electrochemical storage behavior of MoS2 nanodots-more precisely single-layered ultrasmall nanoplates-embedded in carbon nanowires has been studied. The preparation is achieved by an electrospinning process that can be easily scaled up. The rate performance and cycling stability of both lithium and sodium storage were found to be outstanding. The storage behavior is, moreover, highly exciting from a fundamental point of view, as the differences between the usual storage modes-insertion, conversion, interfacial storage-are beneficially blurred. The restriction to ultrasmall reaction domains allows for an almost diffusion-less and nucleation-free 'conversion', thereby resulting in a high capacity and a remarkable cycling performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carboxy marks the spot: A carboxy‐directed asymmetric hydrogenation of 1,1‐diarylethenes and 1,1‐dialkylethenes with chiral iridium/spiro phosphine–oxazoline catalysts has been developed. A wide range of chiral diarylethanes and chiral γ‐methyl fatty acids were synthesized with excellent enantioselectivity (see scheme). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Supramolecular systems consisting of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) and Ni complex are designed for robust photocatalytic reduction of CO2. Multiple heteroatom‐hydrogen bonding between the COF and Ni complex is identified to play a decisive role in the photoexcited electron transfer across the liquid‐solid interface. The diminution of steric groups on COF or metal complex can optimize catalytic performance, which is more attributable to the enhanced hydrogen‐bond interaction rather than their intrinsic activity. The photosystem with relatively strong strength of hydrogen bonds exhibits remarkable photocatalytic CO2‐to‐CO conversion, far superior to photosystems with supported atomic Ni or metal complex alone in the absence of hydrogen‐bond effect. Such heteroatom‐hydrogen bonds bridging electron transport pathway confers supramolecular system with high photocatalytic performance, providing an avenue to rationally design efficient and steadily available photosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]