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In carbon allotropes, interfacial engineering of various sp2 nanocarbon building blocks has shown great promise in designing and fabricating creative nanocarbon assemblies with novel structural and functional properties. Here, a robust, flexible, metal‐like heterostructured carbon nanotube (CNT) film formed of amorphous graphene nanosheets (AGNs) on CNT networked film is demonstrated, presenting a sp3‐sp2 dominated interfacial heterostructure. Extensive characterization reveals that AGN exhibits a complete absence of long‐range periodicity with twisty six‐member rings. Such 2D graphene mailed 1D CNT structure endows the heterostructured carbon nanocomposite film with a combination of unique properties, including surface nano‐flattening (flatness fourfold of the raw CNT film), excellent anti‐wear performance, greatly enhanced modulus (enhanced by 400%), hardness (enhanced by 300 times), and conductivity (enhanced by 270%). Unlike conventional carbon‐based materials, such flexible films show distinct substantial deformability and rapid resilience over wide temperatures (−196–≈1300 °C), which facilitate the design of new‐concept lightweight high‐temperature resistant and shape‐transformable materials for advanced aerospace applications under extreme conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging optical synapses with in‐memory computing sensor (IMCS) performance are considered to be one of the most effective candidates to circumvent the bottleneck of the current Von Neumann structure while developing neuromorphic systems with higher effectiveness and lower energy consumption. Biomimetic properties of optical IMCS synapses in function and form indicate the higher requirements for utilized functional materials, such as stronger optical sensitivity and lower energy dissipation. Because of properties with high optical‐sensitivity efficiency and excellent electrical conductivity, low‐dimensional nanomaterials have received tremendous interest in modulating optical‐induced synaptic plasticity and emulating optical‐triggered neuromorphic activity of optical IMCS synapses. Herein, a comprehensive summary of optical IMCS synapses based on low‐dimensional nanomaterials is introduced systematically for the first time, including 0D, 1D, and 2D materials. In addition, the content of biomimetic synaptic characteristics, materials classification, operation mechanism, and neuromorphic applications of optical IMCS synapses based on low‐dimensional nanomaterials are also summarized in this work. At last, the challenges and outlook related to artificial optical IMCS synapses with low‐dimensional nanomaterials are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A single crystal of 2D layered α‐MoO2 using a simple technique of physical vapor deposition (PVD) method is generated. By adjusting the growth temperature, the thickness of α‐MoO2 single crystals can be tuned to sub ten nanometers. High‐resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) images verified the atomic structural details of PVD grown orthorhombic MoO2 (α‐MoO2) nanosheet with high quality. Additionally, the unsaturated linear magnetic range (LMR) in the grown nanosheets is up to 5 T. Also, α‐MoO2 nanosheet with low defect displays excellent conductivity that is comparable to the metal silver. Thus, this new nanomaterial can show a promising application as a potential 2D conductor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extraneural electrodes that cling to the nerve show great advantages in decreasing the damage of nerves, as compared to the intraneural electrodes. The grand challenge for the extraneural electrode is the instability of its electrode–nerve interface during nerve movement. In the proposed research, an adaptive, stretchable, and biocompatible carbonene extraneural electrode, which integrates rigid 2D defective graphene nanosheets on the soft carbon nanotube (CNT) fiber, is designed. The rigid nanosheets and the soft nanotubes are dominated by sp2 nanocarbon, which is defined as carbonene. Benefiting from the soft and robust nature of the CNT fiber, the hybrid carbonene electrodes can be facile‐tailored into various complex shapes with a wide range of modulus (0.5–600 kPa), which plays a significant role in mechanical match of the modulus with that of the nerve. Moreover, the hybrid carbonene fiber exhibits excellent electrical conductivity (3.3 × 105 S m−1) and novel biocompatibility. As a result, the carbonene electrode shows a preferable performance compared to the traditional metal electrode, whose peak‐to‐peak action potential is 310% higher than the commercial Pt electrode. Overall, this work proposes a novel strategy for assembling the facile‐tailorable and biocompatible carbonene electrode, which can open an avenue for designing the next‐generation neural electrode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasmon‐based sensing relies on the interaction of photons with nanostructured materials. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biological and chemical sensors offer unique advantages of real‐time and label‐free detection techniques and therefore, they have been around in the commercial market for many decades. The principle of the Goos–Hanchen (GH) shift, whereby linearly polarized light undergoes a small lateral shift upon total internal reflection at a dielectric surface, is highly sensitive to refractive index (RI) changes in the sensing medium and can thus be utilized for plasmonic sensing. 2D materials such as graphene can boost the plasmonic efficiency of these sensors because of their excellent optical properties. Herein, a customized GH shift–based SPR sensor is devised using graphene‐coated Au chips. With the help of experimental results, it is shown that graphene can enhance the sensitivity of the conventional Au‐only configuration 2.35 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasmonic sensing relies on the interaction between the electromagnetic light wave and free electrons that reside at the interface of two materials, one of them being a metal. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR)‐based biosensing has distinct advantages of providing real‐time and label‐free detection technique that is capable of giving accurate and repeatable results. 2D nanomaterials (graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides [TMDCs] such as MoS2 and WS2) have recently gained high popularity in the field of biomedical sciences. Using Biacore commercial SPR machine manufactured by GE Healthcare, the efficacy of various combinations of these materials coated on the plasmonic metal gold (Au) (Au + MoS2, Au + WS2, Au + graphene, Au + graphene + MoS2, and Au + graphene + WS2) is evaluated, in enhancing the sensitivity of the biosensor as compared with the standard Kretschmann configuration (only Au). Some simulation results are also presented at incident light wavelengths of 633 and 785 nm that are based on the angular interrogation method. To conclude, it is found that the sensitivity in the increasing order is: only Au < Au + MoS2 < Au + WS2 ≈ Au + graphene < Au + graphene + MoS2 < Au + graphene + WS2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have garnered the attention of numerous researchers due to their environmentally friendly features, high safety, and abundance of raw materials. In this study, we present a zinc-manganese oxide (defined as Zn/NaMnO) battery system that employs the layered monocrystalline hexagonal phase, δ-MnO 2 , as the cathode, synthesized via the molten salt-assisted method. Our findings demonstrate that the ultra-thin δ-phase monocrystalline structure augments the active sites of electrochemical reaction, enhances surface interface interactions, and facilitates H+ diffusion kinetics, thus promoting high-rate performance. The Zn/NaMnO battery exhibits impressive capacity (335 mA h g−1 at 0.5 C) and ultra-long cycling stability at high current density (4000 stable cycles at 20 C with 90 % capacity retention). This work provides a novel methodology for the development of rechargeable ZIBs systems with excellent performance and mass production potential. • The Na+ pre-intercalated MnO 2 (NaMnO) nanosheets synthesized by molten salt-assisted method with mass production. • Monocrystalline hexagonal NaMnO nanosheets with stable structure and fast electron transport. • The special two-dimensional structure facilitates the storage of H+ and improves the rate performance. • Capacity of NaMnO nanosheets was up to 335 mA h g−1 in battery test. • NaMnO nanosheets exhibit high stability after 4000 cycles at current density of 20 C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass adhesives show great potential in developing environment-friendly wood-based panel industry. Among them, soybean protein isolate (SPI) adhesives have a wide source of raw materials, but exploring high-strength, water-resistant, mildew-proof soybean protein-based adhesives remains a tremendous challenge. Inspired by the spatial structure arrangement of spider silk in nature, a facile and efficient bionic approach is adopted to prepare soybean protein adhesive with excellent overall performance by introducing chitosan (CS) and MXene nanosheets in soybean protein. The addition of MXene nanosheets is expected to form the β-sheet crystalline conformation of spider silk, which contributes to the formation of a tightly cross-linked adhesive system that hinders the penetration of moisture. Compared with the 1-SPI adhesive, the prepared 5-SPI/CS/MXene adhesive shows an increase of 175% in wet shear strength (1.76 MPa), indicating excellent adhesion strength and water resistance. Besides, the addition of CS benefits to improve the dispersibility of MXene in the adhesive system. Therefore, the synergy of MXene and CS significantly improves the strength, water resistance of the adhesive and increases the storage time from 7 d to more than 50 d. This research would provide a new idea for the preparation of biomass-based adhesives. [Display omitted] • Aunique β-sheet structure of spider silk is constructed through simple method. • The prepared SPI/CS/MXene adhesive shows excellent wet shear strength (1.76 MPa). • Uniform dispersion of MXene in adhesive improves the toughness via load transfer. • The adhesive possesses excellent mildew resistance due to the CS and MXene. • The synergistic effect of CS and MXene optimizes the structure of the protein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]