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High-nickel content cathode materials suffer issues of structural and surface instability. Herewith authors show that introduction of a nickel valence gradient enhances the thermal and cycle stability of high-nickel content cathode materials.

Broadband light antireflection materials have numerous applications as highly transparent window, for broadband applications thin-film multilayers have been considered. Here, Rahman et al. demonstrate broadband antireflection enhancement in silicon solar cells using a self-assembled, nanostructured copolymer.

A compositionally complex (high-entropy) doping strategy is proposed to fabricate zero-strain high-Ni and Co-free layered cathodes with superior structural and mechanical stabilities and long cycle life.

Enhancing and optimizing the performance and durability of nanocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction is crucial for fuel-cell applications. A class of Pt–Co nanocatalysts consisting of ordered Pt₃Co intermetallic cores with a 2–3 atomic-layer-thick platinum shell now exhibit a large increase in mass activity and specific activity when compared with disordered alloy nanoparticles.

Self-healing is an appealing property for solid-state battery electrolytes to combat Li metal dendrites that pierce through the solid electrolyte. Here, authors report a self-healing electrolyte and observe its self-repairing kinetics in real-time using advanced microscopy.

A graphdiyne-assisted ultrafast sparking synthesis platform is developed to synthesize a group of metastable nanomaterials, including single-atom materials, high-entropy alloys and high-entropy oxides.

There is an intensive effort to develop Li-ion batteries that rely on sustainable materials. Here the authors employ a complex doping approach to synthesize low-Ni, Co-free cathode materials that display promising electrochemical performances.

Single-atom catalysts demonstrate enhanced catalytic properties, but most systems only explore combinations of a few different metals. Here, a library of 37 different elements is investigated, and it is shown that loading 12 metallic atoms in one system presents improved electrochemical activity.

Li-metal surfaces can be effectively protected against corrosion using fluoroethylene carbonate, leading to a conformal and stable solid–electrolyte interphase.

High-Ni-content layered cathodes are promising for lithium-ion batteries, but investigating their delithiation-induced phase boundaries is challenging. Intralayer transition motifs at complex phase boundaries in these high-Ni electrodes are now resolved using deep-learning-aided super-resolution electron microscopy.

Understanding bimetallic alloy oxidation is key to design of hollow-structured binary oxides and their optimization for applications, e.g., as catalysts. Here the authors combine real-time imaging and chemically-sensitive electron tomography to uncover unexpected complexity in possible morphological outcomes of bimetallic oxidation.

Ideas about angular momentum that have been borrowed from optics could allow the magnetic and spin structures of materials to be studied on atomic scales with electron vortex beams.

A nanofin structure enables a working memristor array with 2-nm feature size and 4.5-Tbit per square inch packing density.

Surface patterning of nanoparticles with polymer patches is achieved in a poor solvent for the polymer by controlling the ratio between the sizes of polymer molecules and nanoparticles.

A vanadium-based lithium-rich disordered rock salt oxide is shown to work as a low-potential anode with rapid intercalation kinetics for lithium-ion batteries.

Controlling the nucleation and growth is essential for enabling long-life Li-metal batteries. Here the authors report the growth of faceted single-crystalline Li seeds on a lithiophobic Fe/LiF composite substrate that enables dense Li deposition under fast-charging conditions.

Replacement of platinum is important for lowering the cost of fuel-cell electrocatalysts, but less precious alternatives such as palladium are hindered by lower durability. Here, the authors show that incorporation of trace amounts of gold improves the durability of palladium based oxygen reduction catalysts.

Memristors are key structural units of complex memory and computing systems, yet most currently available memristors are based on materials that are not compatible with silicon technology. Here, the authors demonstrate a CMOS-compatible, self-rectifying memristor and arrays entirely based on p-Si/SiO₂/n-Si.

Surfaces of electrodes evolve with charging and discharging cycles, leading to deterioration of battery performance. Here Lin et al. report structural reconstruction and chemical evolution at the surface of a stoichiometric layered cathode material with spectroscopy and microscopy techniques.

It is a challenge to visualize phase conversion in batteries. Here Lin et al.report a grid-in-a-coin cell approach to directly probe three-dimensional morphology and charge state distribution of electrode materials, and reveal the dominance of a heterogeneous phase conversion mechanism.

Single sodium-ion solid electrolyte that meets the requirements of practical applications is difficult to design. Here, the authors show how kinetic stability via the creation of a self-passivating solid electrolyte interphase allows a homogenous glass solid electrolyte to exhibit remarkable electrochemical stability with sodium metal.

Ultrafine catalysts are desirable for the reduction of fuel cell costs but are intrinsically unstable. Here the authors report graphene-nanopocket-encaged PtCo catalysts with exceptional durability under the demanding ultralow-Pt-loading condition while delivering a satisfactory fuel cell performance.

Selective surface blocking allows for the regioselective DNA functionalization of nanoparticles and control over their self-assembly.

Catalysts are dynamic species, whose structure can change over the course of a reaction. Here, structural changes are mapped for cobalt–palladium nanoparticles during CO oxidation, showing a reconstruction to CoO_x on palladium surfaces. Furthermore, the composition-dependent reconstruction can be correlated with the trend in catalytic activity.

Assembling nanoparticles into precise architectures by controlling their positions in three-dimensional space is a major challenge in nanoscience. Here, the authors construct complex, preprogrammed clusters of DNA-encoded nanoparticles by coordinating them onto a DNA mesh wireframe.

Electrocatalysts which deliver high selectivity for two-electron oxygen reduction to hydrogen peroxide in acidic media are sought to replace the conventional anthraquinone process. Here, the authors develop partially oxidised palladium clusters on carbon nanotubes with near 100% selectivity.

Voltage decay is a major problem in applications of high-energy Li- and Mn-rich layer-structured battery materials. Here, the authors report the evolution of redox couples as the origin of the voltage decay and discuss strategies to suppress the problem.

Elctrochemical water splitting is of vital significance for energy conversion and storage. Here the authors show an electrocatalyst based on amorphous ruthenium-tellurium porous nanorods which exhibit significantly improved OER performance than its crystalline counterparts

Conventional crystal growth models assume crystals grow into a structure-less liquid, even though liquid metals have shown evidence of structural ordering. Here, the authors show crystal growth can be influenced by the presence of thermodynamically unstable local structural order in the liquid.

Three-dimensional DNA frames can be created with controlled valence and coordination for the assembly of ordered arrays of biological and inorganic nanomaterials.

The authors show that after cycling the model cathode material Li₂Ru_0.5Mn_0.5O₃ undergoes ruthenium segregation and even exsolution at the reconstructed oxide surface, which triggers a progressive degradation process. The insights enable new dimensions in choosing dopants for stabilized cathode surface.

Water oxidation is key to the production of chemical fuels from electricity. Now, guided by theory, NiCoFeP oxyhydroxide catalysts have been developed that require an overpotential lower than that required by IrO₂. In situ soft X-ray absorption studies of neutral-pH NiCoFeP catalysts indicate formation of Ni⁴⁺, which is favourable for water oxidation.

Designed DNA-based polyhedral frames, whose vertices are connected to nanoparticles, facilitate their self-assembly into predetermined crystalline and open three-dimensional lattices.

Octahedral DNA origami frames that have encoded vertices capable of attaching nanoparticles can be used to form precise three-dimensional nanoparticle clusters and one- and two-dimensional nanoparticle arrays.

Controlling self-assembly of nanoparticles into superlattices is an important approach to build functional materials. Here, Lu et al. use directional binding provided by DNA-encoded polyhedral blocks—cubes or octahedrons—to guide spherical nanoparticles into clusters and three-dimensional lattices.

Advanced batteries require careful control over the interfacial properties of their constituent materials. This study designs hierarchically structured cathode materials that are resistant to surface reconstruction, leading to improved cycling performance.

Calcium ions play a vital role in enabling synaptic plasticity in biological systems. The dynamic behaviour of these ions has now been emulated in a metal atom diffusion-based memristor.