Nanoscience News (<front>)

Aerodynamic Surface Dimpling

Static aerodynamic surfaces cannot adapt to dynamic wind profiles, limiting performance under variable operating conditions. In article number 2505817, Katia Bertoldi and co-workers introduce a stretch-induced dimpling textile metamaterial that tunes aerodynamic properties even when body-conformed. Wind-tunnel tests and simulations show drag modulation up to 20%. Active stretching enables optimal performance across variable speeds, opening transformative applications in wearables, aerospace, maritime, and civil engineering.

Long-Term Pain Management

In the Research Article DOI: (10.1002/adma.202503872), Daniel S. Kohane, Christopher B. Weldon, and co-workers demonstrate the development (in vitro and in vivo) of an aptamer/liposome (Lipo-Apt) drug delivery system that incorporates both affinity-controlled and diffusion-controlled drug release mechanisms into a single vehicle, thus prolonging the duration of effect without resultant toxicity. In vivo, a single injection of tetrodotoxin at the sciatic nerve in rats provided prolonged local anesthesia lasting for about one week.

Halogen Ion-Mediated Strategy for Producing MXenes

In article number 2504586, Li Song and co-workers reveal the mechanism of halogen ion etching of MAX phases. Subsequently, NH4F rapid etching strategy and organic intercalant-assisted NH4X heterostructure construction strategy are discovered. These approaches are successfully extended to various MAX phases and heterostructure synthesis, producing Mo2CTx@MoS2 composites with amorphous MoS2 surface layers. The heterostructured MXenes exhibit modulated energy storage mechanisms.

Enzymatic Metabolism Driven by Photonastic Movement in a Bioinspired Starfish Prototissue

In the article number 2502830, Pierangelo Gobbo and co-workers report the bottom-up chemical construction of the first starfish-like prototissue capable of photonastic movement and photo-mechano-chemical transduction. Such higher-order behaviors emerged from the interaction and collective coordinated responses that were enabled by the spatial integration of specialised protocell units within the prototissue. Applications include modular micro-bioreactors and soft actuators for biohybrid robotics.

The article provides a comprehensive review of Si-based tandem solar cells, highlighting the advantages of silicon as a bottom cell and exploring top cell technologies including III–V compounds, perovskites, and emerging chalcogenide materials. It summarizes current challenges of these top cell materials and offers insights into future research directions to develop highly efficient Si-based tandem PV systems.

Tandem solar cells, which integrate multiple junctions, present a promising pathway to surpass the efficiency limits of single-junction silicon (Si) solar cells. This article explores why Si is the optimal choice for the bottom cell in tandem configurations and examines various configurations and interconnection techniques that have been reported. It then reviews a range of photovoltaic (PV) technologies for the top cell, including well-established III–V compounds and emerging materials like perovskites and chalcogenides PV materials, which are currently used or have potential for use in constructing Si-based tandem cells. Additionally, the paper highlights the ongoing challenges faced by these top cells in Si-based tandem technology. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive overview of different PV technological advancements and to identify strategic directions for future research that could lead to the development of highly efficient Si-based tandem PV systems.

This review focuses on the application of single-atom materials (SAMs) in advanced battery systems, including metal-ion batteries, Li–S/Na–S batteries, and metal–air batteries. By tailoring atomic-level active sites, SAMs effectively alleviate key issues such as volume expansion, dendrite growth, and capacity degradation. Their unique properties offer promising strategies for enhancing electrochemical performance, stability, and energy density in next-generation energy storage devices.

Single-atom materials (SAMs) are a fascinating class of nanomaterials with exceptional catalytic properties, offering immense potential for energy storage and conversion. This work explores their advantages, challenges, and underlying mechanisms, providing valuable insights for rational design. By precisely controlling active sites, SAMs enable efficient charge and energy transfer, ultimately enhancing system performance. In applications such as metal-ion batteries, supercapacitors, metal anodes, Li–S batteries, Na–S batteries, and metal–air batteries, SAMs effectively address key challenges, including volume change, dendrite formation, and capacity fading. Their unique electronic and structural properties also make them highly efficient electrocatalysts, demonstrating remarkable activity and selectivity in lithium polysulfide, oxygen reduction, and carbon dioxide reduction reactions. Finally, the challenges and future prospects of SAMs in the energy storage field are discussed. With ongoing research and development, SAMs are poised to revolutionize the field, serving as foundational elements in the transition to sustainable and clean energy.

Ionic thermoelectric (i-TE) gels are increasingly recognized in energy harvesting and sensing for their exceptional stretchability, adaptability, ease of large-scale fabrication, and outstanding thermoelectric performance. This review summarizes recent progress of i-TE gels for applications in low-grade heat energy harvesting, thermal sensing, human-machine interfaces, and biomedical applications, while highlighting current challenges and future optimization directions.

Harvesting the low-grade heat energy from the environment and the human body remains an underutilized energy. Ionic thermoelectric (i-TE) gels have garnered significant attention in the fields of energy harvesting and sensing due to their exceptional stretchability, adaptability, ease of large-scale fabrication, and excellent thermoelectric performance. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the recent progress of i-TE gels in application of temperature sensing and low-grade heat energy harvesting. The narration begins with the introduction of the synthetic and natural polymer for i-TE gels. Then, various methods are discussed to enhance the mechanical performance (stretchability, self-healing, and mechanical durability) to satisfy the flexible device based on i-TE gels. Noticeably, this work emphatically summarizes the improvement methods of thermopower for i-TE gels, including the preparation of n-type i-TE gels and the bidirectional modulation of their thermopower. Finally, this work explores the diverse applications of i-TE gels, including low-grade heat harvesting, sensing, human-machine interfaces, and biomedical applications.

The main barriers to the development of lithium metal batteries (LMBs) should originate from the imperfect solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) on lithium metal anode (LMA). This review comprehensively analyses and focuses on the causal relationship between the electrolyte and SEI design during the lithium plating/stripping process, and its content will provide inspiration for its practical application of high-energy LMBs and boost the enduring enthusiasm in this field.

High-energy lithium (Li) metal battery (LMB) is widely recognized as the game-changer for the currently commercialized lithium-ion batteries, because of their high energy density when paired with many cathodes such as layered oxide cathode (500 Wh kg−1), sulfur cathode (600 Wh kg−1), and oxygen cathode (700 Wh kg−1). In addition to the energy-related application, the electrochemical Li metal plating/stripping process is also the core for Li-mediated ammonia synthesis, Li plasmon-based low-powered dynamic color display, and so on. However, the insufficient understanding of the electrochemical process of the Li metal plating/stripping process is still restraining the development of these research directions. Herein, key advances for the key properties of solid electrolyte interphase, electrolyte engineering, and the artificial solid electrode interphase of lithium metal anode are reviewed. Based on these contents, several key points for the practical application of LMBs, including electrolyte design, energy density, and safety, are outlooked.

This review provides a comprehensive analysis of aqueous iron-ions batteries, highlighting focusing on fundamental mechanisms, key challenges related to iron-ion behavior and recent breakthroughs. By unveiling fundamental strategies for optimizing anode design, enhancing cathode stability, and developing functional electrolytes, and bridging the gap between scientific innovation and industrial deployment, this work contributes to the commercialization of advancing sustainable energy storage technologies.

Aqueous iron-ion batteries (AFIBs) have gained significant attention due to their low cost and inherent safety. However, challenges such as competitive hydrogen evolution at the anode, poor cathode structural stability, and electrolyte oxidation hinder further development. Given the rapid advancements in this emerging field, a timely summary of current progress and trends is essential. This review presents a comprehensive overview of recent developments in AFIBs, focusing on fundamental mechanisms and key challenges related to iron-ion behavior. Meanwhile, current strategies for optimizing anode design, enhancing cathode stability, and developing functional electrolytes are further analyzed. Finally, the future prospects of AFIBs are discussed, with a comparative evaluation of design strategies to guide targeted material development and bridge the gap between laboratory progress and practical applications, thereby promoting commercialization.

This review highlights recent advances in crystal orientation engineering for energy materials. It discusses orientation-dependent properties, characterization methods, preparation strategies, and their applications in energy conversion and storage systems. It provides insights into how orientation control enables performance breakthroughs in energy-related applications and may guide future developments in this emerging field.

Nanoscale material design is crucial to the development of efficient renewable energy and storage technologies. While conventional research paradigms have emphasized material morphology, crystal polymorphs, and defect engineering, recent years have witnessed an emerging research interest in crystal orientation engineering since it can exploit anisotropic material properties to significantly enhance  emerging energy storage and conversion applications. Herein, a comprehensive review of engineering the crystal orientation of materials to improve various energy conversion and storage technologies is provided. First, we discuss the effect of crystal orientation on material properties, including electrical conductivity, dielectric constant, surface energy, surface electronic structure, atom/molecule adsorption ability, and ionic conductivity. Then, the techniques to characterize the crystal orientation, including X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and optical microscopy, are reviewed. After that, effective strategies to engineer crystal orientation using both bottom-up and top-down approaches are summarized. The advances in crystal orientation engineering in energy conversion (electrocatalysis, solar cells, and nanogenerators) and storage (metal anodes, non-metal-based electrode materials, and solid electrolytes) applications are subsequently discussed. Finally, future perspectives on the potential of crystal orientation engineering and its impact on emerging energy transition technologies are summarized.

A comprehensive review of the interactions between ions and solvent molecules, namely active cations, anion receptors, weakly coordinated anions, and solvation structure, is offered to establish a fundamental understanding of solvation chemistry in Mg electrolytes. The established connection provides valuable guidance for designing next-generation Mg electrolytes.

Rechargeable magnesium batteries (RMBs) have emerged as a promising candidate for next-generation energy storage due to their intrinsic safety and abundant resource availability. However, the development of ideal electrolytes that enable reversible Mg plating/stripping and ensure electrode compatibility remains a significant bottleneck. Over the past decades, considerable efforts have been devoted to addressing this challenge, highlighting the need for a comprehensive and fundamental understanding of the complex nature of Mg electrolytes. This review presents a comprehensive overview of the advances in nonaqueous Mg electrolytes, with an emphasis on solvation chemistry that governs ion transport, redox kinetics, and solid-electrolyte interphase formation. A systematic analysis of the interactions between ions and solvent molecules, namely active cations, anion receptors, weakly coordinated anions, and solvation structure, is offered to establish a fundamental understanding of structure-function relationships in Mg electrolytes. Furthermore, the key challenges and emerging research trends in Mg electrolytes are summarized. This work underscores the critical role of mastering solvation chemistry in optimizing RMB performance and provides principled guidance for rational, bottom-up Mg electrolyte design.

This review examines the development and use of cell membrane-coated scaffolds in tissue engineering. Bioinspired phospholipid and glycocalyx coatings enhance anti-fouling, anti-thrombogenic, and selective molecular recognition properties. Native cell membrane coatings further support cell-specific interactions, immune modulation, and reduced bacterial adhesion. Recent advances in skin, bone, neural, and vascular regeneration highlight their broad therapeutic potential.

Cell membranes are emerging as valuable models for regulating scaffold-cell interactions in tissue engineering. Their unique structure and function provide an ideal template for creating biomimetic surfaces that support cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. This has led to the development of cell membrane-coated scaffolds (CMCSs), a new class of biomaterials designed to mimic native cellular interfaces and improve therapeutic outcomes. This review begins with an overview of cell–extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions, highlighting their key roles in tissue remodeling and healing. It then introduces ECM-inspired coatings before focusing on CMCSs. A detailed analysis of scaffolds coated with specific membrane components or entire cell membranes is presented, with applications in skin and wound healing, bone regeneration, neural repair, and vascular grafts. Techniques for membrane extraction, surface functionalization, and preservation of membrane integrity and orientation are analyzed. CMCSs demonstrate advantages over traditional scaffolds, including improved homotypic cell attraction, immune modulation, and resistance to non-specific protein and bacterial adhesion. However, several challenges persist, such as standardizing membrane isolation methods, optimizing coating density, and evaluating the stability and reproducibility of coatings, especially when using hybrid membranes from multiple cell types. Overcoming these barriers could significantly advance scaffold technologies for regenerative medicine.

Mechanoresponsive behaviors in hydrogels often arise from dynamic or non-covalent interactions between polymer chains. This review highlights self-healing, shear-thinning, shear-thickening, and strain-stiffening hydrogels formed through dynamic crosslinking motifs, discussing their underlying mechanisms and emergent applications across biomedical and engineering contexts.

Mechanoresponsive hydrogels undergo changes in their physical and chemical properties in response to mechanical stimuli such as strain, force, or shear stress. These responses are often mediated by dynamic or non-covalent intermolecular interactions. Unlike covalent bonds, which confer desirable mechanical strength but result in static networks, dynamic crosslinking motifs introduce reversibility that enables mechanically actuatable behaviors such as self-healing, shear-thinning or -thickening, and strain-stiffening. This review highlights these four distinct mechanoresponsive behaviors in dynamic hydrogels, examining their underlying mechanisms, characterization methods, and emerging applications, with a focus on the critical role of dynamic interactions in enabling their mechanoresponsive properties.

Thermodynamically favorable small molecules electrooxidation-assisted hybrid electrochemical systems provide an appealing solution for achieving energy-saving hydrogen production. This review summarizes recent advances in such hybrid systems, including pollutant degradation, waste plastic upgrading, bipolar hydrogen production, and electricity output. In addition, the remaining challenges and future prospects for hybrid energy-saving hydrogen production systems are discussed.

To alleviate overdependence on traditional fossil resources, green hydrogen (H2) production from an electrochemical water splitting (EWS) system powered by renewable energy resources (i.e., tidal, wind, and solar energy) has garnered considerable attention for its environmental sustainability. Nevertheless, the H2 production efficiency of the EWS system is restricted by the sluggish four-electron transfer process of the anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER), which inhibits its further large-scale applications. Herein, recent advances in the hybrid EWS systems that substitutes OER with the thermodynamically favorable small molecules electrooxidation reaction (SMEOR) to integrate with the hydrogen evolution reaction are reviewed. First, the catalytic mechanisms of electrocatalysts toward SMEOR, reactor configurations, and evaluation parameters are briefly summarized. Next, the advantages and characteristics of the hybrid systems of SMEOR integrated with hydrogen evolution reaction/oxygen reduction reaction are highlighted and discussed in detail, including pollutant degradation, waste plastic upgrading, production of value-added chemicals, bipolar H2 production, and electricity output. Subsequently, the optimization strategies for rationally engineering the catalysts of SMEOR are proposed. Last, the current obstacles and future expectations of the hybrid EWS systems are outlined. This review aims to stimulate the further evolution of green H2 production.

Light activation of gas sensors is a promising strategy for enabling power-efficient operation in next-generation smart devices, where a rational design of sensing layers can enhance light energy utilization. This review discusses design strategies for light-activated gas sensors, including doping-induced band structure tuning, plasmonic nanoparticle incorporation, and heterojunction engineering, along with key factors in light-activated gas sensing.

Light activation stands out as one of the most promising strategies for improving the energy efficiency of chemiresistive gas sensors, a crucial step toward their commercialization and integration with smart devices. Current designs of light-activated gas sensors have primarily focused on catalyst decoration and doping in various photoreactive substrates (e.g., semiconducting metal oxides, conductive metal–organic frameworks, or transition metal dichalcogenides). These approaches aim to induce surface activation to varying extents rather than optimizing the material itself for efficient light-energy utilization. Consequently, advancing light-activated gas sensor technology requires a dual focus on enhancing gas response characteristics and maximizing the utilization of incident light energy. To this end, this review provides an in-depth analysis of the photochemical mechanisms governing light-activated gas sensing, highlights key factors for performance optimization, and discusses the recent advancement in design strategies such as band structure tuning through doping, plasmonic nanoparticle incorporation, and heterojunction engineering. This review concludes with insights on future research directions in material development, signal processing, and device integration, offering a comprehensive perspective on the practical advancements of light-activated gas sensing technology.

This study presents an innovative oral drug delivery system using piezoelectric BaTiO₃ nanoparticles on Enterobacter aerogenes microrobots encapsulated in enteric microcapsules. These microrobots can penetrate the intestinal mucus barrier and target the colorectal tumor microenvironment, inducing tumor cell death through ultrasound-activated reactions while simultaneously promoting an immune response against tumors.

The oral treatment of colorectal cancer is highly desirable due to its noninvasiveness and potential for localized drug action, yet it remains challenged by gastrointestinal barriers and limited intratumoral penetration. This study presents the first oral biohybrid microrobot system that integrates ultrasound-activated piezoelectric catalysis with bacterial therapy, achieving synergistic tumor targeting, reactive oxygen species generation, and immune activation. By leveraging Enterobacter aerogenes (EA) and BaTiO3 nanoparticles, this strategy induces immunogenic tumor cell death and metabolic remodeling. It utilizes BaTiO3 incorporated into EA (EA@BTO) microrobots, which are encapsulated in enteric microcapsules. These microcapsules, encapsulated in enteric microcapsules via photocurable 3D printing, protect during digestion, target tumors, penetrate mucus, and release gases. They thrive in anaerobic, acidic environments, enabling precise, responsive delivery within the intestinal tract. Once the microrobots reach the tumor, the BaTiO3 nanoparticles catalyze reduction and oxidation reactions upon ultrasound irradiation, leading to the induction of immunogenic tumor cell death. Notably, the consumption of lactic acid by BaTiO3 and EA alleviates the immunosuppressive microenvironment within the tumor. This promotes the maturation of dendritic cells and the polarization of macrophages toward the M1 phenotype, thereby reducing the proportion of regulatory T cells and enhancing the population of effector T cells.

This work presents the FLight biofabrication for engineering in vitro muscle constructs by photocrosslinking pristine collagen and fibrinogen using ruthenium. The resulting mini-muscles retain in vivo-like tissue organization and a Pax7⁺ cell pool. Notably, these mini-muscles are self-renewable upon injury, and their regenerative capacity can be further enhanced by small molecules such as Repsox.

The plasticity and regenerative capacity of skeletal muscle arise from quiescent stem cells activated upon overload, injury, or disease state. Developing in vitro muscle models to study these properties can advance muscle disease modeling and pre-clinical evaluation. Here, Filamented Light (FLight) bioprinting is leveraged as a high-throughput approach for producing mini-muscle tissues. Using paired box protein 7 (Pax7)-nGFP primary myoblasts, mini-muscles are bioprinted from pristine collagen-fibrinogen (ColFib). The FLight hydrogel consist of aligned microstructures which guide the formation of aligned myotubes. Mini-muscles demonstrates in vivo-like tissue organization, including multinucleated myotubes and a Pax7+ cell pool embedded in newly deposited laminin. Both spontaneous and electrically stimulated contractions are observed. ColFib matrix is promising for maintenance of the Pax7+ cell pool. Damage from cardiotoxin-induced injury of the mini-muscles led to a massive proliferation of Pax7+ cells and restoration of the contractile properties of myotubes. Notably, small molecules such as Repsox can enhance regeneration. FLight printed mini-muscles have potential for applications in muscle biology, exercise/atrophy, disease models, and drug screening.

A strategy to enhance flexoelectricity by designing the macroscopic symmetry of the material parameters and device structure is proposed. The centrosymmetric piezoelectric bimorph cantilever exhibits a flexoelectric coefficient of 1.47 × 106 nC m−1, and the mirror-symmetric one with spaced-interdigitated electrodes achieves a record-high value of 2.53 × 106 nC m−1. This strategy can guide the design of high-performance flexoelectric devices.

Flexoelectricity is enabled by symmetry in all materials. However, flexoelectric material application is limited by the normally low charge density produced in bulk materials. In this study, a universal strategy involving a macroscopic symmetry design is proposed to enhance the flexoelectricity. Through theoretical derivation, flexoelectricity can be improved by designing the macroscopic symmetry of the material parameter distribution (including the piezoelectric coefficients) and device structure. As a demonstration, typical piezoelectric bimorph cantilevers (PBCs; Ag/PZT-5H/Ag/PZT-5H/Ag) are constructed with the two PZT-5H layers arranged in “head-to-tail” polarization (mirror symmetry) and “tail-to-tail” polarization (centrosymmetry), to design the macroscopic symmetry and thus to tune the flexoelectricity. The theoretical predictions and experimental results show that the tail-to-tail PBC achieves a flexoelectric coefficient (1.47 × 106 nC m−1), 20 times higher than that of the head-to-tail PBC (7 × 104 nC m−1) and conventional piezoelectric cantilevers (Ag/PZT-5H/Ag). Furthermore, by introducing spaced-interdigitated electrodes, the macroscopic symmetry of the head-to-tail PBC can be transformed from mirror to centrosymmetry, yielding a giant flexoelectric coefficient of 2.53 × 106 nC m−1. This strategy offers a dimension beyond traditional approaches for understanding and enhancing flexoelectricity, paving the way for its practical application.

Piezoelectric injectable anti-adhesive hydrogel promotes Achilles tendon healing, forming a barrier to prevent adhesion and inflammation, and accelerates repair via piezoelectricity, offering a new clinical treatment strategy.

Achilles tendon rupture has become a common sports injury nowadays, but tendon repair is still is a challenge in the clinical practice. Tendon adhesion, which results from exogenous healing, is a crucial problem impairing tendon repair. Meanwhile, insufficient endogenous healing from the tendon stem cells, makes tendon repair even more difficult. Here, a piezoelectric injectable anti-adhesive hydrogel (PE-IAH) is reported, which can simutaneously promote endogenous healing while inhibiting exogenous healing in the tendon repair process. The in vivo study reveals that the PE-IAH can form a physical barrier in situ at the tendon injury site, which reduces the inflammatory response and effectively prevents the tendon from adhering to surrounding tissue. Meanwhile, the piezoelectric short fibers incorporated in the hydrogel can evidently promotes the proliferation and differentiation of tendon stem cells due to piezoelectric effect under ultrasound excitation. Altogethter, the PE-IAH successfully accelerates the endogenous healing of tendon in addition to the anti-adhesion purpose, resulting in remarkably elevated tendon functions (Achilles Functional Index: −15.6 of PE-IAH versus −30.6 of injectable anti-adhesive hydrogel (IAH), Day 14). This study provides a new strategy for advanced healing and functional recovery of Achilles tendon, which is promising to become a potential clinical treatment option.

Inspired by the photoexcitation properties of Li2O2, a strategy for constructing a Z-type heterojunction at the photocathode@Li2O2 interface is proposed for photo-assisted Li-O2 batteries. This Z-type heterojunction acts as a charge modulation channel for carrier dynamics within Li2O2 through photocathode modifications. By utilizing edge dislocation -WO3 as the photocathode, both high capacity and low overpotential are achieved.

The operation of rechargeable Li-O2 batteries critically depends on the highly reversible formation and decomposition of Li2O2 at the cathode. However, the intrinsic insulating nature of Li2O2 fundamentally restricts reaction kinetics, posing a core challenge to practical applications. Here, it is demonstrate that the insulating properties of Li2O2 can be effectively improved by photoexcitation, attributed to the generation of photo-induced charge carriers. It is inspired to develop photo-assisted Li-O2 batteries featuring Z-type photocathode@Li2O2 heterojunction, which serves as a charge modulation channel to regulate carrier dynamics through photocathode modifications. By employing edge-dislocated WO3 as the photocathode, sustained growth of Li2O2 films is observed with a thickness >18 µm, which is 2–3 orders of magnitude higher than typically reported values. Benefiting from the enhanced exciton dissociation of Li2O2 and improved oxidative capability of photocathode, the battery delivers an ultra-high discharge capacity of 31 800 mAh g−1 under a current density of 100 mA g−1 and a light-induced temperature of ≈60 °C. In addition, a low polarization overpotential of 0.04 V is achieved with high reversibility over 1 000 h. The grasp of photoexcited Li2O2 within Li-O2 batteries can drive solutions beyond state-of-the-art metal-air batteries.