We present a review of the latest research on devices that enable direct thermal-to-electrical energy conversion, specifically thermoelectric generators, coolers, and heat pumps. The discussion highlights the major advances achieved using silicon as a thermoelectric material. In particular, silicon nanostructures exhibit remarkably low thermal conductivity, and the silicon power factor can be optimized by adjusting the doping level, with further improvements possible through energy-filtering techniques which can be
implemented with standard silicon processing.
Our review concentrates on monocrystalline silicon, as it is the foundation of the modern electronics industry, making silicon-based thermoelectric devices highly promising for immediate technological applications. We examine the challenges associated with designing monocrystalline nanostructured silicon thermoelectric systems and outline the most effective strategies for their fabrication. Finally, we discuss the fundamental principles and guidelines for the design and engineering of these devices.

Solar-powered interfacial evaporation technology, owing to its high efficiency and low-carbon advantages, has become a research hotspot. This paper comprehensively sums up the progress in the research of carbon-based, plasmonic, and inorganic semiconductor photothermal materials for solar-driven water evaporation.Carbon-based materials, such as vertical carbon nanotube arrays and graphene aerogels, leverage π-π* transitions and phonon scattering to attain an ultra-broad photonic absorption of over 99.9% across the 0.4-20μm spectrum. Plasmonic materials like Au/Al nano-structures harness localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) to intensify near-field thermal effects at specific wavelengths. Inorganic semiconductor materials such as TiN, CuS, and MXene are optimizing their photothermal conversion efficiency through band-gap engineering and non-radiative carrier relaxation.Structural light-absorption designs have significantly lifted the photonic absorption rate to above 98%, while also ensuring water transport and thermal localization, with evaporation rates reaching 4.02 kg·m⁻²·h⁻¹. But there are still challenges to overcome, including material durability in complex aqueous environments, scalable cost, and the theoretical upper limit of photothermal efficiency.In the future, it will be necessary to combine super-material and artificial-intelligence technologies to develop new-type light-absorbing materials that are efficient, weather-resistant, and low-cost. This will drive the large-scale application of this technology in areas like seawater desalination and industrial wastewater treatment.

In this work we report the synthesis and characterization of WS2/MoS2heterostructures prepared by sequential chemical vapor deposition using H2S and thermally evaporated metal as precursors. A thin WS2covers (1-2 monolayers) are produced on pre-formed MoS2nanowall films, resulting in nearly complete quenching of the MoS2photoluminescence (PL) and emergence of a dominant WS2PL peak at higher energy. Remarkably, electrical measurements reveal that the thermally activated conduction in the both layered materials have nearly the same activation energies, suggesting comparable donor activation energies and a possible near-alignment of the CBM positions within experimental uncertainty. This particular 'quasi-type-I' alignment is in sharp contrast to the conventional staggered (type-II) alignment normally expected in WS2/MoS2heterostructures. Transient absorption pump-probe spectroscopy shows signatures consistent with ultrafast interlayer charge transfer and possible interlayer exciton formation. We present a comprehensive study of the optical, structural, and transport properties of prepared samples, and discuss the carrier transfer mechanisms that give rise to the observed PL redistribution.

This work reports a low-cost optoelectronic synaptic device based on an electrochemically deposited CuI thin film. The electrochemical deposition technique enables large-area and uniform thin-film fabrication under low-temperature and ambient-pressure conditions, offering significant advantages of simple processing, cost-effectiveness, and compatibility with flexible substrates. Under 445 nm light stimulation, the device successfully emulates the biological synaptic functions, including paired-pulse facilitation, spike-width-dependent plasticity, spike-frequency-dependent plasticity, and spike-number-dependent plasticity. Furthermore, by implementing a convolutional neural network for backend processing of the device-generated optoelectronic pulse signals, a high training set recognition accuracy of 95.2% is achieved under 50% noise perturbation in clothing image classification tasks, validating its potential for low-power, highly parallel neuromorphic computing applications.

This work designs a hierarchical porous nanospherical Cu2O/CuO heterojunction catalyst in situ grown on the nanoporous copper (NPC) network via anodization, for efficient degradation of organic pollutants. The Cu2O/CuO@NPC catalyst concurrently achieve a self-standing, hierarchical porous structure as well as the construction of Cu2O/CuO heterojunction. Under visible light irradiation, the Cu2O/CuO@NPC catalyst exhibits an excellent degradation performance towards Rhodamine B (RhB), achieving complete pollutant removal within 12 minutes. Notably, benefiting from the self-standing structure and stable nanosphere morphology, it still retains 94.5% of its degradation efficiency even after 14 consecutive cycles, which is much superior to most reported Cu2O/CuO nanocatalysts. Most importantly, this work proposes the formation mechanism of the nanospheres and conducts an in-depth analysis of the photocatalytic degradation mechanism using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. This study provides both experimental and theoretical insights for designing efficient heterostructured photocatalysts, with promising application value in the field of environmental remediation.

This study develops a bioinspired bilayer volatile memristor with a W/SiO₂/Cux(SiO2)100-x/Cu structure. The morphology and crystalline structure of the conductive filaments were directly observed via cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. Discrete spherical copper-based grains construct conductive filaments with large internal surfaces, some of which are distorted due to stress interactions with the silicon dioxide matrix. According to the results of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the diffusion of copper and redox reactions (involving the valence state transitions of copper to zero valence, positive monovalence, and positive divalence) are the core mechanisms governing the dynamic evolution of conductive filaments. When the stimulus is subsequently removed, the minimization of the thermodynamic surface energy drives the transformation of nonspherical grains into stable spherical grains, leading to conductive filament rupture and spontaneous recovery of the device to the initial state. By regulating the parameters of pulse signals to achieve precise control over conductive filament dynamics, the device successfully reproduces the behavior of nociceptors. A high accuracy of 93.11% for the handwritten digit recognition task in neurocomputing is achieved, showing the multipurpose function of the memristor.

Single-crystalline Au structures are an ideal building blocks for high-performance optoelectronic and electronic devices, and the precise alignment of Au functional units on largearea substrates serves as a core driver for advancing wafer-scale integration. However, the process faces two fundamental obstacles: (1) the deterministic positioning of pre-synthesized nanocrystals at target coordinates, and (2) morphological inhomogeneity accompanied by low fabrication yield in seed-mediated in-situ grown architectures. To date, the reliable fabrication of high-quality Au microstructures with precise spatial and crystallographic alignment, as well as chemically clean surfaces, on macroscopic substrates has not yet been realized. To address this critical challenge, we propose an electrochemical selective epitaxial deposition method based on surface state modulation, which enables the reliable fabrication of high-quality Au microstructures at the wafer scale. This mask-free growth strategy yields Au microstructures with atomically flat surfaces and a highly pure single crystallographic orientation. Our work provides a promising technical solution for the construction of high-performance optoelectronic integration platforms.

Quantum spin-liquid (QSL) ground state emerges in frustrated magnetic systems where competing interactions suppress long-range magnetic ordering. TbInO3, a hexagonal perovskite, shows QSL behaviour due to geometrical frustration and strong spin-orbit coupling present in it. Here, we report the strain-driven modification of the magnetic ground state and the enhancement of magnetic frustration at milli-Kelvin (mK) temperature (<1 K) in the TbInO3epitaxial thin film, grown on MgO (100) substrate. We observe a Curie-Weiss crossover at 1-30 K temperature, strong antiferromagnetic interactions, along with the absence of long-range ordering down to 400 mK, consistent with a QSL ground state. Notably, the thin film exhibits a significantly enhanced effective moment in the mK range compared to the bulk, attributed to strain-induced modification of the exchange pathway among Tb3+ions. This impact broadens the QSL state's temperature range to lower temperatures and enhances magnetic frustration in the temperature-field phase space. Further, the first-principles calculation also supports the enhancement of frustration in thin film. These findings demonstrate that strain-induced tuning of exchange interactions can enhance the magnetic frustration, offering a route to stabilise QSL phases down to lower temperatures in hexagonal perovskite thin films.

Converting harmful nitrate waste into value-added chemicals represents a promising alternative for achieving the electrocatalytic upgrading of NO3- and maintaining the global nitrogen balance. Nonetheless, improving the electrochemical performance and revealing reaction mechanisms still requires further investigation to meet the practical application requirements. Herein, we summarize the development of electrochemical NO3- reduction reaction (NO3RR) and C-N coupling reaction under pulsed-potential conditions. In the section on NO3RR, the electrocatalytic reaction systems for direct conversion of NO3- to NH3 are summarized. In the section on coupling, the C-N coupling reactions of NO3- with CO2 for urea synthesis, and with organic molecules for amino compounds synthesis are reviewed. The corresponding reaction mechanisms for different reaction systems are compared with the aid of theoretical calculations. Finally, the challenges and future perspectives are proposed. The pulsed-potential electrolysis for nitrate reduction not only increases the concentration of the local NO3-, key reactant, and intermediate species, but also restores the oxidation state of the active sites, providing guidance and reference for a nitrogen economy.

NO₂ is a highly irritating toxic gas that poses risks to respiratory health, and its concentration fluctuations in exhaled breath are associated with respiratory diseases such as asthma. Thus, developing high-performance room-temperature NO₂ gas sensors is of great practical significance. In this study, a room-temperature NO₂ gas sensor based on few-layer Ti₃C₂ MXene/WO₃ nanoparticles composites was developed. WO₃ nanoparticles were synthesized via a one-step hydrothermal method and physically mixed with few-layer Ti₃C₂ MXene. The crystal structure, surface morphology, and NO₂ sensing performance of the composite materials were characterized. The results show that the optimized Ti₃C₂ MXene/WO₃ composites exhibited excellent gas-sensing properties with a response of 8.3 (dR/Ra) to 1 ppm NO₂, which is 23 times higher than that of pure WO₃ (response of 0.36). Further tests verified that the optimized sensor had excellent repeatability, long-term stability, and good selectivity. This work demonstrates the potential of the WO₃/Ti₃C₂ MXene composite for room-temperature NO₂ detection.