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High plating currents are achieved in solid-state batteries without dendrites by densifying Li₆PS₅Cl, with modelling showing how specific microstructural changes increase the critical current density.

A mechanical crack-based sensor inspired by the mechanism spiders use to sense minute variations in stress offers ultrahigh sensitivity to pressure and vibration and can easily be mounted on human skin for the purposes of speech recognition and the monitoring of physiological signals.

Analysis of dendrite initiation, owing to filling of pores with lithium by means of microcracks, and propagation, caused by wedge opening, shows that there are two separate processes during dendrite failure of lithium metal solid-state batteries.

Exactly how hydrogen renders metals brittle is still unclear, and it remains a challenge to predict component failure due to hydrogen embrittlement. Here, the authors identify a class of grain boundaries in a nickel superalloy that deflects propagating cracks and improves alloy resistance to hydrogen.

Lithium dendrite propagation through ceramic electrolytes can prevent the realization of high-energy-density all-solid-state lithium-anode batteries. The propagation of cracks and lithium dendrites through a solid electrolyte has now been tracked as a function of charge.

The hydrogen plasma-enabled reduction mechanisms of iron oxide, including reducing species and the rate-controlling process, are identified by observing real-time magnetite nanoparticle morphology changes via nanoscale operando plasma TEM.

Understanding the ripening of core-shell nanostructures is challenging. Here, the authors use liquid cell transmission electron microscopy to show that the atomic ripening pathway for Cd-CdCl₂ core-shell nanoparticles is mediated by crack defects.

Smart monitoring devices with integrated mechanical protection and piezoelectric induction are limited. Here, the authors report a strategy to grow piezoelectric Rochelle salt crystals in 3D-printed cuttlebone-inspired structures to produce smart monitoring devices with integrated mechanical protection and electrical sensing capability.

To obtain superior mechanical properties of cast components, grain refinement via semi-solid deformation is desirable. Here, the authors use in situ X-ray tomography to study the response of an alloy to indentation, and present a new mechanism of transgranular liquation cracking.

Satellite observations over the Greenland Ice Sheet reveal a destructive mode of meltwater drainage whereby a subglacial flood induced by the rapid drainage of a subglacial lake burst through the surface, fracturing the ice sheet.

Mixing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with halide salts enable low-temperature melting and processable MOF-derived glasses with tunable properties and enhanced structural versatility.

This work employs nano- to microscale characterization to identify different structural change pathways associated with non-homogeneous reactions within the particles, and explores differences in the failure mechanisms of lithium-rich transition metal oxide materials at different current densities.

A running gecko can adhere to any surfaces at wet or dry conditions, whilst it keeps its toe pads clean. Here, Xu et al. attribute this self-cleaning mechanism to the rate-independent adhesion response between dirt particles and the gecko’s foot and use synthetic microfibers to reproduce the effect.

Shark teeth have short lifespans yet can be subject to significant mechanical damage. Here, the authors report on a site-specific damage mechanism in shark teeth enameloid, which maintains tooth functional shape, providing experimental evidence that tooth architecture may have influenced the diversification of shark ecologies over evolution.

Tomographic volumetric printing (TVP) is considered as a fast and auxiliary-free 3D printing technique, but control of internal mechanical properties remains less investigated for TVP. Here, the authors show that wavelength-sensitive photoresins can be cured using visible and UV sources simultaneously in a TVP setup to generate internal mechanical property gradients with high precision.

Severe structural deformation during (de)lithiation is the main factor limiting the stability of Si anodes in Li-ion batteries. Here, a multi-modal approach is used to visualize these deformations in their early-stage and link them to inhomogeneities in the dual-layer solid-electrolyte interphase.

A fundamental understanding of fatigue-failure mechanisms is key to develop robust structural materials. Here the authors report a high entropy alloy with enhanced fatigue life by ductile transformable multicomponent B2 precipitates, as revealed by combined experimental and simulation methods.

Ceramics are very brittle and hard to be plastically deformed. Here, the authors report a unit-cell scale disturbance mechanism to improve the deformation ability of ceramics and ultimately achieve large mechanical property enhancement.

This Review discusses recent progress in bioinspired nanocomposite design, emphasizing the role of hierarchical structuring at distinct length scales to create multifunctional, lightweight and robust structural materials for diverse technological applications.

A new integration approach, nano-ridge engineering, enables electrically driven GaAs-based laser diodes to be fabricated on Si wafers in a complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) pilot line, showing potential for the integration of laser diodes in a Si photonics platform.

Severe capacity decay at high voltages prevents the application of Ni-rich layered oxide cathodes. Here the authors report an electrolyte additive in a common commercial electrolyte that enables stable cycling at an ultra-high voltage of 4.8 V.

Nanocrystalline metals are ultra-strong because of the large fraction of material at the grain boundaries, but this also leads to instability under applied loads. Here, the authors deepen our understanding of this by linking stress-driven motion of grain boundaries to grain boundary chemistry.

The transfer of 2D materials from growth to device substrates has hampered their scalability. Now, a robotic, solvent-free process promises clean, high-yield and wafer-scale integration.

Tunable polarization control and a two-colour X-ray pump–X-ray probe operating mode are demonstrated at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS).

Producing in situ composite materials with superior strength and ductility has long been a challenge. Here, the authors use lamellar microstructure inherited from casting, rolling, and annealing to produce an ultrafine duplex eutectic high entropy alloy with outstanding properties.

Distinguishing between periods of unrest and the run-up to eruption is a major challenge at volcanoes around the globe. Here, we leverage multidisciplinary data to show that the Mauna Loa 2022 eruption was caused by 2 months of magma intrusion.

Lattice reconstruction in twisted transition metal dichalcogenides manifest in intrinsic asymmetry of electronic wavefunctions for 3R homo-bilayers and strong piezoelectric textures in 2H homo-bilayers.

Soil-like granular flow has previously been shown when deforming semi-solid metals. Here, the authors measure bulk and grain-level deformation in semi-solid alloys in three dimensions using X-ray tomography, exploring shear-induced dilation between 64–93% solid and finding hints of a critical state.

On the anniversary of the Boyden et al. (2005) paper that introduced the use of channelrhodopsin in neurons, Nature Neuroscience asks selected members of the community to comment on the utility, impact and future of this important technique.

Printing and heating of a fluorinated elastomer mixed with silver flakes, a fluorine surfactant and methylisobutylketone leads to the formation of in situ silver nanoparticles, which boost the conductivity of this highly stretchable composite material.