Resin flow dynamics and impregnation uniformity are critical factors governing the quality and manufacturing efficiency of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites fabricated by liquid composite molding (LCM). To address these challenges, a hierarchical three-dimensional carbonaceous nanostructure was constructed on carbon fiber surfaces. This architecture was designed to enhance resin impregnation across multiple scales: single fibers at the microscale, fiber bundles at the mesoscale, and fiber fabrics at the macroscale. Experimental results showed that the hierarchical structure significantly improved the wettability of the carbon fibers, reducing the contact angle from 50.65° to 34.95°. Meanwhile, the capillary infiltration rate constant of the fiber bundles and the average resin infiltration velocity through the fabric increased by 84.2% and 85.7%, respectively. The enhanced intra-bundle infiltration reduced the velocity mismatch between intra-bundle and inter-bundle flows, thereby improving the overall uniformity of resin impregnation. Moreover, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed to elucidate the underlying infiltration mechanisms. The simulations revealed that the hierarchical structure increased the magnitude of the capillary pressure within the microchannels by 166.4%, leading to enhanced capillary-driven resin transport. Importantly, the nanostructured interface promoted molecular-chain migration within the microchannels by modifying solid-liquid interactions, thereby facilitating resin infiltration within the fiber bundles.

Alkaline ferrocyanide-polysulfide redox flow batteries (Fe/S RFBs) have emerged as a promising candidate for grid-scale energy storage, primarily owing to their low raw material costs, intrinsic operational safety, and the inherent decoupling of power and energy in their design. Yet the intrinsically sluggish S₂^2-/S^2- chemistry restricts their power output and cycling durability. To tackle this, we developed a copper sulfide (CuS) and waste-asphalt-derived carbon co-modified carbon felt electrode (CuS-WA/CF), where waste-asphalt pyrolytic carbon serves as an interlayer to guide uniform copper electrodeposition. Subsequently, sulfidation converts the copper into well-dispersed CuS nanoparticles. This rational design increases the specific surface area by approximately 8.4-fold (from 9.55 to 80.46 m² g^-1) and markedly boosts electrochemical activity and conductivity. As a result, the assembled Fe/S RFB with CuS-WA/CF as the anode delivers a peak power density of 259.2 mW cm^-2, which is 61.4% higher than the pristine-CF counterpart. At 40 mA cm^-2, the cell maintained an average energy efficiency (EE) of 77.7% across 10,000 constant-current charge-discharge cycles. In a separate test using a higher-concentration ferrocyanide catholyte and excess anolyte, the cell delivered an average EE of 84.0% across 25,000 capacity-limited cycles. Beyond the performance gains, this work turns waste asphalt into a functional carbon source, offering a low-cost, scalable route toward the practical deployment of Fe/S RFBs for renewable integration.

A niobium (Nb)-doped micro arc oxidized coating (MAO) was fabricated on a titanium substrate, and microwave hydrothermal (MH) post-treatment was applied to regulate the microstructure of the coating, aiming to enhance bone-implant osseointegration and antibacterial performance. The experimental results showed that the as-prepared MAO coating was composed of nanocrystalline TiO₂ and a large amount of amorphous phase containing oxygen, Nb, calcium, phosphorus, and other bioactive elements. After MH treatment, short rod-like hydroxyapatite (HA) crystals were uniformly formed on the porous surface of the Nb-doped MAO coating, resulting in a well-ordered crystalline structure with tight interfacial bonding between the HA crystals and the MAO coating. The incorporation of Nb and MH post-treatment synergistically optimized the surface microtopography and chemical composition of the MAO coating, which markedly enhanced in vitro bioactivity, in vivo osseointegration, and antibacterial properties.

The development of large, high-quality flexible high-temperature superconducting films is a crucial focus in flexible electronics research, posing challenges and offering promising applications. Among candidate materials, YBCO is a high-performance high-temperature superconductor. However, the mechanical behavior and stress evolution of its flexible thin films remain a critical gap in current research, hindering further development. In this investigation, a YBa₂Cu₃O₇/SrTiO₃/Sr₄Al₂O₇ heterostructure was synthesized on SrTiO₃ substrates via pulsed laser deposition (PLD). By selectively etching the water-soluble Sr₄Al₂O₇ sacrificial layer, crack-free, high-quality freestanding YBa₂Cu₃O₇ films at the millimeter scale were successfully fabricated, and remarkable improvements in superconducting properties were achieved, with critical transition temperature and magnetic shielding response approaching the intrinsic characteristics of bulk YBa₂Cu₃O₇. Bending experiments demonstrate that the superconductivity of freestanding YBCO films can be effectively modulated by mechanical strain. Under in‑plane compressive strain, the film exhibits an increased superconducting transition temperature, whereas in‑plane tensile strain diminishes superconductivity. This study not only presents a dependable approach for producing high-quality flexible high-temperature superconducting films but also establishes a fundamental strain-modulation mechanism. By controlling bending, achieved enhancement and continuous modulation of the superconducting properties. These results are essential for the advancement of new-generation flexible electronic devices based on high-temperature superconducting materials.

Siloxene and germanane are two-dimensional (2D) direct-bandgap semiconductors that hold promise for a range of applications, including photocatalysis, electronics, and photodetectors (PDs). In this study, we explore a novel direct Z-scheme 2D-2D siloxene/germanane heterojunction fabricated via wet-mixing self-assembly. This heterojunction exhibits superior light absorption compared with the individual nanosheets. Notably, when employed as a photoelectrode material for photoelectrochemical (PEC) PDs, it shows a marked photoresponse across the 365-980 nm range, with a peak responsivity at 520 nm. Specifically, under 520 nm illumination, its responsivity surpasses those of siloxene and germanane nanosheets by factors of 221.3 and 3.7, respectively. Remarkably, even at zero bias, it achieves a high photoresponsivity of 3.75 μA W^-1 and a detectivity of 1.3 × 10⁸ Jones, demonstrating excellent self-powered performance. Owing to its exceptional light sensitivity at 520 nm, the Z-scheme heterojunction is particularly well suited for the PEC photodetection of tartrazine, offering an ultralow detection limit of 0.3 pM and a broad linear range from 1 pM to 1 μM in aqueous media. Overall, this research highlights the considerable potential of the siloxene/germanane heterojunction for advanced optoelectronic applications, including high-performance PDs and PEC sensors.

Developing low-cost, highly responsive low-temperature H₂S sensors is critical due to rising air pollution, as well as the high energy consumption and safety risks associated with conventional semiconductor sensors. Non-stoichiometric NiO_x offers enhanced carrier concentration and active sites via nickel vacancies, thereby improving low-temperature sensitivity. Composite sensors were fabricated by incorporating various mass fractions of the topological insulator Bi₂Te₃ into NiO_x. The 10% Bi₂Te₃@NiO_x sensor delivered the best performance [11.81 response to 10 ppm H₂S at 90 °C, 30% relative humidity (RH)], surpassing most reported H₂S sensors. Its sensitivity is attributed to enhanced carrier mobility and Bi₂Te₃ Dirac point shift upon H₂S physisorption. With excellent H₂S selectivity and stability, this composite offers a safer, energy-efficient, low-temperature alternative to high-temperature sensors.

Selenide compounds are known for their intrinsically low thermal conductivity, yet their thermoelectric application is often hindered by poor electrical transport. Here we examine how this limitation manifests in three different systems, Sn-Se, Sb-Se, and Bi-Se, by correlating their microstructures with measured transport properties. Sn-Se forms a composite containing crystalline SnSe, elemental Se, and amorphous regions, resulting in ultralow lattice thermal conductivity [0.08 W/(m·K) at 650 K] but limited carrier mobility [~7.39 cm²/(V·s)]. Sb-Se is largely amorphous with scattered Sb₂Se₃ crystallites, yielding extremely low electrical conductivity (~6.86 × 10^-2 S/m at 300 K) despite a high Seebeck coefficient (1,902 μV/K). Bi-Se develops a distinct two-phase structure comprising metallic Bi nanoprecipitates embedded in a semiconducting Bi₂Se₃ matrix. This configuration enables efficient charge transport through interconnected Bi pathways [μ ≈ 2,170 cm²/(V·s)]. The electrical conductivity reaches 1.56 × 10⁴ S/m at room temperature and exceeds 3.7 × 10⁴ S/m at elevated temperatures, while the Bi₂Se₃ matrix preserves a reasonable Seebeck coefficient. Additionally, atomic-scale disorder at the Bi/Bi₂Se₃ interfaces enhances phonon scattering, reducing lattice thermal conductivity without severely impeding electron flow. As a result, the Bi-Se system achieves a peak thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) of approximately 0.85 at 400 K, demonstrating excellent low-temperature performance, while the Sn-Se system reaches a ZT of ~1.0 at 650 K, suitable for mid-temperature applications. These findings suggest that incorporating a metallic secondary phase into a semiconducting matrix can help balance the competing requirements for thermoelectric performance, although the optimal operating temperature range depends on the specific microstructure.

Ferroelectric HfO₂-based thin films are promising for next-generation non-volatile memories. Achieving further understanding of how the interfaces and defects influence switching dynamics and reliability is essential for device optimization. Here, we investigate the polarization switching kinetics, breakdown strength, and retention of a series of epitaxial Hf_0.5Zr_0.5O₂ (HZO) of increasing thickness and grown using different oxidation conditions on substrates with different orientations. Time-dependent ferroelectric characterization shows that films in the intermediate thickness range (≈5-10 nm), which exhibit the largest remanent polarization (above 30 μC/cm²), show slower switching. In addition, polarity-dependent switching kinetics is observed in ultrathin films, which is attributed to built-in electric fields associated with asymmetry between interfaces. Reliability analysis shows that the breakdown electric field decreases with increasing thickness, reaching up to ~55 MV/cm,, while the retention remains stable in the optimal thickness range. These results demonstrate that the interplay between film thickness, interface symmetry, and oxidation conditions during growth governs the switching dynamics and reliability of epitaxial HZO films, providing guidelines for the design of high-performance ferroelectric devices.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) offer intrinsic safety and cost advantages for grid-scale energy storage, yet their practical deployment is severely hindered by parasitic hydrogen evolution and uncontrollable dendrite growth. Zeolite-based separators have emerged as a promising solution; however, conventional designs rely on randomly oriented zeolites and polymer binders, which compromise ion transport efficiency and mechanical robustness. Here, we demonstrate that binder-free separators fabricated from highly [010]-oriented MFI zeolite nanosheets (MFI-NS) can overcome these limitations. The binder-free strategy endows the MFI-NS separator with a tensile strength two orders of magnitude higher than that of commercial glass-fiber (GF) separators, providing exceptional mechanical robustness against dendrite penetration. The self-assembled lamellar stack of MFI-NS ensures straight channels well-aligned perpendicular to the electrode surface, delivering a Zn²⁺ transference number 266% higher and an ionic conductivity 62% higher than those of separators comprising randomly oriented MFI particles, thereby enabling rapid and efficient Zn²⁺ transport. Concurrently, the uniform micropores in MFI-NS effectively suppress hydrogen evolution and retard dendrite formation. These synergistic benefits markedly enhance the electrochemical performance of AZIBs. The V₂O₅||MFI-NS||Zn full cell delivers a high specific capacity of 420 mAh g^-1 at 1 A g^-1 and retains 71% of its initial capacity after 1,200 cycles, which substantially outperforms the cells with separators comprising conventional GF or randomly oriented MFI particles. This work establishes crystallographic orientation engineering in zeolite separators as a powerful strategy for addressing multiple degradation mechanisms in AZIBs.