Sequential bridging and horizontal alignment: A synergistic engineering strategy for high-performance Graphene/CNF films

Simultaneous passivation of bulk and interface defects through synergistic effect of anion and cation toward efficient and stable planar perovskite solar cells

The performance of inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is often impeded by severe non-radiative recombination and carrier transport losses at the self-assembled monolayer (SAM)/perovskite interface, arising from inhomogeneous SAM distribution and weak interfacial bonding with the perovskite layer. To address these challenges, we introduce a universal synergistic interface engineering strategy employing 2-aminopyrimidine-4-carboxylic acid (m-APCA), a meta-substituted molecule featuring asymmetric bifunctional groups on its pyrimidine ring. These groups induce substantial molecular polarization, amplifying the dipole moment and reinforcing intermolecular π-π interactions with SAMs, thereby mitigating SAM aggregation and ensuring uniform substrate coverage. Concurrently, the strong dipole field and bifunctional chemistry of m-APCA enable robust chemical bonding with the perovskite layer, acting as nucleation sites that regulate grain growth and passivate buried interfacial defects. This dual-action approach reduces interfacial energy barriers and enhances hole transport efficiency, achieving very high efficiencies of 26.77% (certified at 26.71%), 26.08%, and 24.17% for small-area (normal bandgap), centimeter-scale (normal bandgap), and wide-bandgap PSCs, respectively. Notably, optimized PSCs demonstrate exceptional operational stability, retaining 96% of initial efficiency after 1200h of continuous maximum power point tracking.

Small-diameter vascular grafts (SDVGs, <6 mm) exhibit significant potential as alternatives to coronary and peripheral arteries, yet their clinical application is hindered by thrombosis and intimal hyperplasia. A synergistic modification strategy utilizing polydopamine (PDA) and lysine (Lys) was developed to functionalize polyimide (PI) fibers, aiming to enhance the antithrombotic properties and endothelial regeneration capacity of SDVGs. Alkaline etching activates PI fibers and facilitates the formation of PDA-Lys composite coatings through Schiff base and Michael addition reactions. Characterization results demonstrate that the modified fibers exhibit significantly reduced surface roughness and enhanced hydrophilicity, while retaining high mechanical strength and thermal stability. Hemocompatibility assessments reveal that PI-PDA-Lys fibers exhibit a hemolysis rate below 3.4% and an 80% reduction in platelet adhesion relative to unmodified fibers. This performance improvement is attributed to the optimized surface charge balance and reduced surface roughness. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) show high viability, sustained proliferation over 7 days, and enhanced migration toward PI-PDA-Lys scaffolds. This multifaceted surface engineering strategy effectively addresses the critical challenges of thrombosis and delayed endothelialization in SDVGs. The modified PI fibers demonstrate significant potential to serve as a viable platform for the development of advanced small-diameter vascular grafts.

Poly (p‐phenylene terephthalamide) (PPTA), known for its exceptional mechanical properties under the brand name Kevlar, finds extensive use in high‐performance applications despite the challenges it presents in processing and integration with other materials. Existing top–down methods for preparing PPTA composites result in significantly reduced strength (&lt;200 MPa) and toughness (&lt;10 MJ·m−3) due to insufficient interfacial interactions, limiting their application. Here, a cross‐scale interface engineering strategy is reported for fabricating super‐strong and super‐tough PPTA composite films. At the microscale, a synergistic crosslinking strategy of physical entanglement and hydrogen bonding to crosslink PPTA nanofibers is employed. At the macroscale, the network using a cyclic freeze–thaw and the stretch‐drying method is reinforced. The PPTA nanofiber composite film is super‐strong (854.6 MPa), super‐tough (106.2 MJ·m−3), and has a high‐temperature resistance (300 °C). Moreover, the bottom–up approach enables the direct synthesis of PPTA nanofibers, significantly reducing the preparation time from 7 days to 0.5 h. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the composite film can be integrated into a robust and intelligent sensing‐display device that responds to external mechanical and heat injuries for firefighter's protection. This work provides an efficient strategy for fabricating high‐performance PPTA composites, paving the way for their practical use as durable protective materials.

Progressive hollow engineering induced raspberry-like magnetoelectric microspheres via synergistic etching-assembly strategy toward boosted microwave attenuation

Synergistic engineering on surface chemistry and morphology in Ti3C2Tx MXene towards high rate and durable LiO2 batteries.

Tyrosol and its glycosylated product salidroside are important ingredients in pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and cosmetics. Despite the ability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to naturally synthesize tyrosol, high yield from de novo synthesis remains a challenge. Here, we used metabolic engineering strategies to construct S. cerevisiae strains for high-level production of tyrosol and salidroside from glucose. First, tyrosol production was unlocked from feedback inhibition. Then, transketolase and ribose-5-phosphate ketol-isomerase were overexpressed to balance the supply of precursors. Next, chorismate synthase and chorismate mutase were overexpressed to maximize the aromatic amino acid flux towards tyrosol synthesis. Finally, the competing pathway was knocked out to further direct the carbon flux into tyrosol synthesis. Through a combination of these interventions, tyrosol titres reached 702.30 ± 0.41 mg l-1 in shake flasks, which were approximately 26-fold greater than that of the WT strain. RrU8GT33 from Rhodiola rosea was also applied to cells and maximized salidroside production from tyrosol in S. cerevisiae. Salidroside titres of 1575.45 ± 19.35 mg l-1 were accomplished in shake flasks. Furthermore, titres of 9.90 ± 0.06 g l-1 of tyrosol and 26.55 ± 0.43 g l-1 of salidroside were achieved in 5 l bioreactors, both are the highest titres reported to date. The synergistic engineering strategies presented in this study could be further applied to increase the production of high value-added aromatic compounds derived from the aromatic amino acid biosynthesis pathway in S. cerevisiae.

Conventional heterogeneous catalysts for CO2 conversion often face limitations in activity, selectivity, and stability under mild conditions, hindering their practical application and effective utilization of CO2. To address these challenges, this study presents a synergistic strategy integrating defect engineering and postsynthetic modification to fabricate metallized defective porous organic polymers (dPOP-OFe-X, X = 5, 10, 20) as efficient heterogeneous catalysts. Comprehensive characterization confirmed the controlled introduction of missing-linker −NH2 defects, the coexistence of imine and aminal linkages, and the successful anchoring of single-atom Fe3+ sites. Compared to nonmetallized counterparts, the dPOP-OFe-X catalysts exhibited significantly enhanced activity in both CO2/epoxide cycloaddition and CO2-mediated amine N-formylation under mild conditions. Specifically, the optimized dPOP-OFe-10 catalyst achieved a 93% yield of chloropropene carbonate from epichlorohydrin/CO2 (90 °C, 0.1 MPa, 8 h) and a 92% yield of N-methylformanilide from N-methylaniline/CO2 (100 °C, 1.0 MPa, 6 h). Additionally, dPOP-OFe-10 displayed broad substrate compatibility with diverse epoxides and amines, maintained high activity over five catalytic cycles, and retained structural integrity after recycling. Combined theoretical calculations and in situ FT-IR spectroscopy elucidated the interaction modes and energy profiles between catalytic sites and model reactants, revealing the synergistic catalytic mechanism involving multiple active sites in the CO2 cycloaddition reaction. This work establishes a practical and universal approach for designing high-performance catalysts via a defect engineering strategy, paving the way for efficient CO2 utilization.

Lanthanide (Ln3+)-enriched upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with high dopant concentrations have garnered significant attention due to their unique optical properties. However, their practical applications are hindered by the deleterious concentration quenching effect. Herein, through kinetic modeling of Er3+ excited-state dynamics employing energy diffusion theories, we demonstrate that concentration quenching in LiErF4 UCNPs predominantly originates from long-range energy migration through the 4I13/2 level toward surface and lattice defects, rather than the conventionally attributed cross-relaxation mechanism. Such migration-mediated energy dissipation can be effectively suppressed by the synergistic engineering strategies combining surface passivation, spatial confinement via a sandwiched LiYF4@LiErF4@LiYF4 core-shell-shell architecture to restrict Er3+ migration, and incorporation of Tm3+ as energy trapping centers, boosting upconversion quantum yield from <0.01% to 2.29% (980 nm@70 W cm-2). The established mechanistic framework and material design principles provide critical insights for engineering heavily doped UCNPs, particularly advancing their application potential in single-particle spectroscopy and optoelectronic nanodevices.