Reviews & Analysis

Moiré materials are an emerging class of strongly correlated quantum materials designed by the rotational or lattice misalignment of 2D crystals. This Review discusses how local probe techniques are uniquely positioned to elucidate the microscopic mechanisms underlying the electronic phases in moiré materials.

Edible robots and robotic food that perceive, process and react to stimuli offer opportunities to develop new medical applications, emergency food-delivery systems, waste-reduction strategies in farming and novel gastronomic experiences. This Perspective surveys edible materials that can be used to manufacture robotic components and discusses examples of edible robots and robotic food.

Developing vaccines for glioblastoma remains challenging owing to the immunosuppressive microenvironment of the tumour and the presence of the blood–brain barrier. In this Perspective, we explore how nanomaterials can be tailored to address the limitations of glioblastoma vaccination, potentially paving the way for important advancements.

Inverted (p–i–n) perovskite solar cells are promising candidates for real-life applications. This Review discusses the current status of this technology, key strategies for stability and efficiency improvements — from the materials selection to interface engineering and device construction — and future outlooks.

Liquid-metal-based magnetic fluids exhibit rich electromagnetic, thermofluidic behaviours, leading to emerging applications in soft robotics, stretchable electronics, energy management and biomedical technology. This Review covers the fabrication, properties and applications of liquid-metal-based magnetic fluids, highlighting their superiority over traditional magnetic fluids.

The family of AV₃Sb₅ kagome superconductors provides a fascinating platform for the investigation of the interplay between superconductivity and charge-density wave order. This Review discusses the properties of the anomalous charge-density wave and superconducting states observed in these materials and surveys future directions in the study of these and related kagome metals.

Hydrogels are promising in various fields, but improving their mechanical properties is critical for certain applications. This Review comprehensively explores design principles to construct hydrogels with superior mechanical strength, toughness and fatigue resistance, and discusses self-growing and self-reinforced hydrogels.

Nonlinear optical interactions can be substantially enhanced by the wavelength-scale confinement in integrated photonics, providing transformative capabilities for controlling, enhancing and manipulating material nonlinearities in miniaturized platforms. In this Review, we outline the design principles that harness the potential of nonlinear optical materials on integrated platforms and their utility in applications including broadband frequency conversion, frequency-comb generation, quantum light sources and nonlinear optical quantum logic gates.

Harvesting freshwater from the air using water sorption materials is an innovative strategy to address water scarcity. This Review offers a multiscale perspective to design the next generation of sorption-based atmospheric water harvesting technology by bridging materials innovations to device realization and provides practical guidelines to understand its real-world impact.

Moiré materials are a versatile and tunable platform that offers a wide variety of lattice constants, energy scales and symmetries, leading to a rich interplay of electron correlations and topology. This Review summarizes recent breakthroughs in topological and Berry physics in moiré materials.

Memristive devices are emerging within the semiconductor industry. Solution-processed memristors present alternatives for flexible, transparent and low-cost applications. This Perspective reviews solution-processed memristors focusing on the reliability of their electrical performance, aiming to increase impact and technology readiness.

Interlayer hybridization in van der Waals stacks is key to understanding their physical properties. This Perspective article discusses the various parameters influencing interlayer hybridization and how they can be controlled, providing a comprehensive guide for designing materials with desired properties.

Solid-state lithium metal batteries have the potential to meet energy density and safety requirements that current commercial Li-ion batteries cannot. Given their solid-state components, these batteries are subject to — and strongly affected by — external pressure during their manufacturing and operation. This Review examines the relationship between external pressure and electrochemical behaviour in these batteries.

High-entropy materials (HEMs) are characterized by their high configurational entropy, providing unique property-tuning capabilities for a variety of applications. This Perspective discusses the potential of HEMs for applications in energy storage, energy conversion and electronics.

Cost and performance analysis, if applied properly, can guide the research of new energy storage materials. In three case studies on sodium-ion batteries, this Perspective illustrates how to implement this type of analysis at the battery material discovery phase to identify the most promising active materials and treatments.

The organic electrochemical transistor (OECT), with its organic mixed ionic–electronic conductor (OMIEC) channel, serves as an amplifying transducer of biological signals. This Review highlights OMIEC design milestones and illustrates how incorporating specific properties into OMIECs can extend OECT applications beyond biosensing.

Flat-band materials such as kagome and moiré lattices and strongly correlated electron systems including heavy-fermion compounds exhibit strikingly similar phenomena of topology and strong correlations. This Perspective article discusses Kondo physics as the underlying theme and a route to a unified understanding.

Taking inspiration from the success of organic light-emitting diodes (LEDs), vapour deposition holds promises for bringing perovskite LEDs closer to commercialization. This Perspective article highlights the main bottlenecks and challenges towards high-efficiency vapour-deposited perovskite LEDs, as well as the prospects on the route towards commercial displays.

Current interest in furthering space exploration is undoubtedly relevant to materials science research. However, as we stand on the brink of a revolution, it is imperative to establish robust frameworks to foster sustainable growth. In this Viewpoint, experts in space policy, environmental stewardship and ethics reflect on issues from space debris management to international collaboration and exploitation of extraterrestrial resources.

Microscale robots have unique advantages for biomedical and environmental applications. This Review discusses materials considerations to enable the propulsion and motion control of these microrobots, as well as their fabrication and potential applications.