The neural system in living organisms has achieved highly optimized features in perception, response, and learning, which are extremely desirable for …

Micro-nano capsules have garnered significant attention due to their potential applications. However, the capacity to load these capsules with various…

Section snippets Main textIt’s that time of year again to reminisce, reflect on the months gone by and prognosticate on those to follow. The year 2024 was as busy as ever for Team Matter, as we settled into a new editorial team (which has already changed), handled increased submission volume, and engaged with the materials science community as much as possible. We celebrated our 5th anniversary in

Humanity stands at the crossroads with our AI machines. At this moment, we can either build a better world together or destroy it—like never before.

While AI has demonstrated impressive capabilities in predicting materials properties, achieving transformative scientific impact will require advances beyond current approaches. We believe that the convergence of AI with materials science presents unique opportunities: accelerating advanced quantum mechanical methods and quantum simulations, bridging quantum-to-macroscopic scales through multiscale

Biohybrid muscle robots ingeniously integrate living biosystems with artificial structures and have enormous potential in various fields. Here, we analyze their development status and propose six pivotal evolution stages of bio-syncretic intelligent muscle robots capable of autonomous thinking.

In the 21st century, traditional lecture-based teaching methods are being increasingly supplemented by interactive and student-centered approaches to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes. This Matter of Opinion explores the use of active learning groups, which were developed by Prof. Billinge as an effective pedagogical tool in materials science and engineering courses.

This is the story of one materials scientist’s journey into the world of speculative fiction, finding mutual inspiration and building stronger linkages between the scientific and science fiction communities.

Direct detection of unmodified molecules at the single-molecule level remains a challenge. A recent research article published in Nature Nanotechnology introduced bilayer-coupled nanopores to indicate the position and length of individual unmodified molecules according to diverse signals (T- and W-shaped). The findings highlight the potential of nanopores for single-molecule detection.

Flexible electronics technologies advance rapidly, especially in wearable and implantable bioelectronic devices. Graphene-modified hydrogels with enhanced properties are one of the promising flexible sensing materials. The diverse synthetic strategies employed for combining graphene with hydrogels and relevant exploration in bioelectronic interfaces are comprehensively summarized for future development

The development of high-voltage Ni-rich cathodes is critical to boost the energy density of a lithium-ion battery (LIB), while a series of chemical and microstructural degradations limit its durable operation. In a recent paper by Liu et al. published at Nature Energy, a surface layer with a compositional and structural dual-gradient design was constructed on a Ni-rich cathode to significantly enhance

The development of active life for PSCs remains stagnant ascribing to the unstable structure of self-assembled monolayer hole-transporting materials (SAMHTMs) with heteroatom substitution. Xue and co-workers introduced a chemical inert and extensive delocalized structure into the rigid self-assembled molecule Py3, which greatly increased the PCE and long-term stability of PSCs.

(Matter 7, 4076–4098; November 6, 2024)

(Matter 7, 4390–4397; December 4, 2024)

Section snippets Main textThump! Another thud as the third cup hits the floor. The water that was inside the cup a moment before makes a splash sound, shoots upwards, and then neatly coats the walls of the refrigerator. The drops look like shiny pearls as they run down to the floor. My son looks down on the spectacle from the top of his step stool by the sink. Fascinated, he fills another cup and repeats

In the rapid chase to address humanity’s grand challenges, we must embrace multiple knowledge systems, including Indigenous ways of knowing, to fuel innovation, translate science into practice, and invite institutional sciences to evolve in an increasingly globalized world.

Here, we highlight 35 global researchers approximately under the age of 35. This third annual cohort was self-generated by initial seed invitations sent by the editorial team, with each contributor suggesting two more in a nominally supervised self-selecting pyramid-like scheme. The final collection reflects both the diversity and excitement across the field of materials science.

Rare earth elements (REEs) are crucial components in nearly all modern electronics. Two recent manuscripts utilize cerium as the key element in two diverse applications (catalysis and optoelectronics) integrated within two diverse emerging materials science platforms (MOFs and perovskites). Such studies pave the way for more exploratory investigations across REEs.

The bottleneck in the commercial application of layered oxide battery cathodes is the harmful effects due to air sensitivity. However, it is not clear which components of the air are determinants of capacity decay and structural degradation of layered oxide cathodes. Recently in Science, Hu and colleagues addressed this long-standing challenge that has plagued the full utilization of sodium-ion batteries

Stretchable materials, such as liquid metals, promise to transform microelectronics hardware into soft, wearable devices. However, a recent report by Kong et al. shows that liquid metals are much more than stretchable wires; their metal-air interfaces offer surprising possibilities for synthesis and deposition of multifunctional two-dimensional (2D) transparent oxide nanomaterials.

Materials do not have a genome, yet for the past decade, and into the next decade, in the USA, there has been a presidential and inter-agency funding initiative called the “Materials Genome Initiative (MGI).” This initiative has nothing to do with real genomes, materials, or otherwise. However, in this paper, we, somewhat whimsically, explore some ideas about what a material’s gene could be and how

The synthesis of lead halide perovskites typically involves airborne H2O molecules, which can exist in gaseous, liquid, or solid forms. Generally, H2O is considered harmful to perovskite materials and devices, causing alarm at the mere mention of it. However, this pair of “old friends” always demonstrate a complex “love-hate” relationship. In some cases, H2O can positively affect perovskites, endowing