Mark H Rümmeli

• Professor (Full) at School of Energy

Insertion anode materials have gained immense attention as commercial anode materials for lithium-ion batteries owing to their reversible Li-ion intercalation/deintercalation mechanism and highly stable crystal structure. Herein, the progress in...

Graphitic carbon materials are widely used in lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) due to their stability and high conductivity. However, graphite anodes have low specific capacity and degrade over time, limiting their application. To meet advanced energy storage needs, high‐performance graphitic carbon materials are required. Enhancing the electrochemical...

Experiments using a transmission electron microscope decomposed zirconium acetylacetonate with an electron beam, forming zirconium nanoparticles on graphene. Continued electron irradiation transformed these nanoparticles into atomically thick zirconium islets (zirconene islets) within the graphene lattice. The electron beam caused zirconium atom di...

The blending of 2D materials and polymers promote the heterosis in flexible electronics, including senses, computing, memory and logic circuits.

Flexible electronics has emerged as a continuously growing field of study. Two‐dimensional (2D) materials often act as conductors and electrodes in electronic devices, holding significant promise in the design of high‐performance, flexible electronics. Numerous studies have focused on harnessing the potential of these materials for the development...

Sodium layered oxide with anion redox activity (SLO‐A) stands out as a promising cathode material for sodium‐ion batteries due to its impressive capacity and high voltage resulting from Mn‐ and O‐redox processes. However, the SLO‐A faces significant challenges in cycling stability and rate performance, primarily due to the poor reversibility and sl...

The van der Waals heterostructures have evolved as novel materials for complementing the Si-based semiconductor technologies. Group-10 noble metal dichalcogenides (e.g., PtS2, PtSe2, PdS2, and PdSe2) have been listed into two-dimensional (2D) materials toolkit to assemble van der Waals heterostructures. Among them, PdSe2 demonstrates advantages of...

The objective of this research was to develop highly effective conductive polymer composite (CPC) materials for flexible piezoresistive sensors, utilizing hollow three-dimensional graphitic shells as a highly conductive particulate component. Polystyrene (PS), a cost-effective and robust polymer widely used in various applications such as household...

High-capacity SiO (SO)-based alloys are among the most promising anodes for next-generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Challenges of SO-based anodes, including sluggish kinetics and poor stability, have been effectively mitigated by using carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as conductive additives. However, the underlying mechanism, apart from kinetics, rem...

The field of two dimensional (2D) materials experienced a surge of discoveries after the isolation of graphene. Among these, the transition metal compounds of Molybdenum and tungsten have been the most extensively studied materials after graphene. More recently, their group member chromium has only recently come to the limelight after the discovery...

Human beings perceive the world through the senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, space, and balance. The first five senses are prerequisites for people to live. The sensing organs upload information to the nervous systems, including the brain, for interpreting the surrounding environment. Then, the brain sends commands to muscles reflexiv...

Graphene remains of great interest in biomedical applications because of biocompatibility. Diseases relating to human senses interfere with life satisfaction and happiness. Therefore, the restoration by artificial organs or sensory devices may bring a bright future by the recovery of senses in patients. In this review, we update the most recent pro...

The need for highly efficient and economical Pt-free oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) electrocatalysts has led to the rapid development of single-atom transition metals anchored on heteroatom-doped carbon catalysts. However, their...

Direct synthesis of large‐area graphene on functional substrates via chemical vapor deposition has become a frontier research stream targeting practical applications. However, the batch production of transfer‐free graphene film with favorable quality and homogeneity remains a grand challenge. Herein, the direct growth of 12‐inch‐sized graphene is d...

Constructing a conductive carbon‐based artificial interphase layer (AIL) to inhibit dendritic formation and side reaction plays a pivotal role in achieving longevous Zn anodes. Distinct from the previously reported carbonaceous overlayers with singular dopants and thick foreign coatings, a new type of N/O co‐doped carbon skin with ultrathin feature...

Micro‐sized silicon (µSi) anode features fewer interfacial side reactions and lower costs compared to nanosized silicon, and has higher commercial value when applied as a lithium‐ion battery (LIB) anode. However, the high localized stress generated during (de)lithiation causes electrode breakdown and performance deterioration of the µSi anode. In t...

Lithium metal is deemed a promising anode material for the next-generation batteries with high specific energy. Unfortunately, the growth of Li dendrites and infinite volume change during cycling, caused by the “hostless” feature of metallic Li, have posed a great challenge to the commercialization of Li metal anode. The introduction of appropriate...

Ultra‐Flat Graphene In article number 2200428, Tongbo Wei, Jingyu Sun, Zhongfan Liu, and co‐workers implement direct growth of wafer‐level, ultra‐flat graphene without any wrinkles and metallic impurities on quartz via the inhibition of textured SiOx seed, identification of the critical temperature regime, and in‐situ flattening of the substrate su...

Atomically dispersed catalysts with high electrocatalytic performance are emerging as promising electrocatalysts for energy conversion and storage devices. Nevertheless, achieving superior bifunctional catalytic activity with single-atom catalysts towards reactions involving multi-intermediates are still facing great challenges. Herein, dual-atomic...

Constructing a conductive carbon-based artificial interphase layer (AIL) to inhibit dendritic formation and side reaction plays a pivotal role in achieving longevous Zn anodes. Distinct from the previously reported carbonaceous overlayers with sigular dopants and thick foreign coatings, a new type of N/O co-doped carbon skin with ultrathin feature...

Under electron beam irradiation, graphene is inclined to form defects (such as vacancies and holes) that can trap foreign atoms to form new structures. The interactions between these structures and graphene have garnered considerable research interest as they can yield exciting properties. This review focuses on the fabrication and characterization...

Inspired by the natural corn structure, a Si@hollow graphene shell@graphene (Si@GS@G) anode material was prepared in which silicon nanoparticles were preliminarily anchored onto the surface of an elastic graphene shell and further constrained using graphene sheets. Hollow graphene oxide shells with abundant surficial hydrogen bonds, which were synt...

Lithium‐rich cathodes (LRCs) show great potential to improve the energy density of commercial lithium‐ion batteries owing to their cationic and anionic redox characteristics. Herein, a complete conductive network using carbon nanotubes (CNTs) additives to improve the poor kinetics of LRCs is fabricated. Ex situ X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy firs...

Rechargeable Zn-ion battery has emerged as a promising alternative to Li-ion battery owing to the high safety and environmental benignity. Nevertheless, dendritic formation and side reaction occurred at the anode side greatly handicap its practical advance. Here, we put forward an effective maneuver to sustain practical Zn anode by optimizing the a...

Silicon (Si) is a promising anode material for next-generation Li-ion batteries. The nanometer-sized Si could alleviate the pulverization caused by large volume changes during deep cycling. However, compression between agglomerated Si particles causes Si cracking and electrode failure. Considering this, we engineered a mechanical cushioning space b...

The elimination of wrinkles has become a research hotspot in the realm of the chemical vapor deposition growth of graphene, and there have been reliable routes developed for the scenario of catalytic synthesis on metals. Nonetheless, the transfer‐free growth of graphene over insulating substrates affording ultra‐flatness remains a puzzle. Here, the...

Although graphite materials with desirable comprehensive properties dominate the anode market of commercial lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs), their low capacity during fast charging precludes further commercialization. In the present work, natural graphite (G) is reported not only to suffer from low capacity during fast charging, but also from charge f...

Three-dimensional (3D) graphene with a high specific surface area and excellent electrical conductivity holds extraordinary potential for molecular gas sensing. Gas molecules adsorbed onto graphene serve as electron donors, leading to an increase in conductivity. However, several challenges remain for 3D graphene-based gas sensors, such as slow res...

Although anodes based on Sn alloys (SnX) such as SnO2, SnS, and Sn4P3 may be used to increase the gravimetric and volumetric energy densities of existing lithium-ion batteries, the further development of these anodes is hindered by their complex reaction mechanisms, sluggish conversion, and the occurrence of undesired reactions. Herein, we probe th...

The dream of human beings for long living has stimulated the rapid development of biomedical and healthcare equipment. However, conventional biomedical and healthcare devices have shortcomings such as short service life, large equipment size, and high potential safety hazards. Indeed, the power supply for conventional implantable device remains pre...

2D nonlayered materials have attracted enormous research interests due to their novel physical and chemical properties with the confined dimensions. Platinum monosulfide as one of the most common platinum-group minerals has been less studied due to either the low purity in natural product or the extreme high-pressure condition for synthesis. Recent...

Two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures possess potentials of atomic-layer thick p-n junctions for ultrathin optoelectronics. The tungsten diselenide becomes one of the most important building blocks because of its p-type charge carrier conductivity. To date, strict monolayer tungsten diselenide film is still required. Jinbo Pang, Hong Liu,...

The heteroatom co-doped carbonaceous anodes have readily attracted great attention in potassium-ion batteries (PIBs), owing to their augmented carbon interlayer distances and increased K⁺ storage sites to induce enhanced capacity value. Nevertheless, the synergistic effect of dual-doped heteroatoms is still unclear and lacks systematic explorations...

Anchored Single-atom catalysts have emerged as a cutting-edge research field holding tremendous appeal for applications in the fields of chemicals, energy and the environment. However, single-atom-catalysts for crystal growth is a nascent field. Of the few studies available, all of them are based on state-of-the-art in situ microscopy investigation...

The graphene-based biosensors such as microfluidic system-integrated field-effect transistors have featured a rapid and precise detection of biomarkers, which supports early diagnosis of diseases. The comprehensive review discusses the sensing mechanisms and applications of the main-streaming sensors in the detection of small molecules, viruses, ba...

Electrochemical CO 2 reduction (CO 2 RR) in a product-orientated and energy-efficient manner relies on rational catalyst design guided by mechanistic understandings. In this study, the effect of conducting support on the CO 2 RR behaviors of semi-conductive metal-organic framework (MOF) — Cu 3 (HITP) 2 are carefully investigated. Compared to the st...

This study reviews the majorly used chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with a focus on confined reaction configurations in which quasistatic equilibrium conditions are obtained for the fabrication of graphene with large size and high quality through controlled nucleation density, feedstock flux, and growth rates. The confinement configurations can als...

Tungsten diselenide (WSe2) possesses extraordinary electronic properties for applications in electronics, optoelectronics, and emerging exciton physics. The synthesis of monolayer WSe2 film is of topmost for device arrays and integrated circuits. The monolayer WSe2 film has yet been reported by thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) approach, and...

Encapsulation of lithium in the confined spaces within individual nanocapsules is intriguing and highly desirable for developing high-performance Li metal anodes. This work aims for a mechanistic understanding of Li encapsulation and its confined growth kinetics inside 1D enclosed spaces. To achieve this, amorphous carbon nanotubes are employed as...

Although lithium (Li) metal anode/lithium–manganese‐rich (LMR) cathode batteries have an ultrahigh energy density, the highly active Li metal and structural deterioration of LMR can make the usage of these batteries difficult. Herein, a multifunctional electrolyte containing LiBF4 and LiFSI dual‐salt additives is designed, which enables the superio...

HIGHLIGHTS • The Internet of Things era related electronics were updated based on carbon nanotube transistors, radiofrequency circuits and energy storage devices. • The applications in healthcare and biomedical devices were discussed including sensory, data processors and actuators. • The fabrication of wafer-scale carbon nanotubes has been introdu...

Direct synthesis of high-quality graphene on dielectric substrates without a transfer process is of vital importance to aim at a variety of applications. Current strategies for boosting high-quality graphene growth, such as remote metal catalyzation otherwise are limited by poor performance with respect to the release of metal catalysts and hence s...

Lithium metal anode is considered as one of the most promising candidates for the next-generation batteries with high specific energy density. However, several thorny problems encompassing uncontrollable Li dendritic growth and wild volume variation during cycling, accompanied by the short lifespan and alarming safety concerns, have hindered the co...

In recent years, two-dimensional (2D) materials have attracted a lot of research interest as they exhibit several fascinating properties. However, outside of 2D materials derived from van der Waals layered bulk materials only a few other such materials are realized, and it remains difficult to confirm their 2D freestanding structure. Despite that,...

Two-dimensional (2D) rare-earth oxides (REO) are a large family of materials with various intriguing applications and the precise facet control is essential for investigating new properties in the 2D limit. However, a bottleneck remains for obtaining their 2D single crystals with specific facets because of the intrinsic non-layered structure and di...

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are widely explored for the ultrashort pulse generation in the fiber lasers enabled by pronounced saturable absorption (SA) effect. Despite many remarkable results demonstrated in the area, degradation of the samples inside the laser cavity limits the widespread use of SWCNT-SA. In the present work, we invest...

Graphene doping continues to gather momentum because it enables graphene properties to be tuned, thereby affording new properties to, improve the performance of, and expand the application potential of graphene. Graphene can be chemically doped using various methods such as surface functionalization, hybrid composites (e.g., nanoparticle decoration...

In this study, in situ transmission electron microscopy is performed to study the interaction between single (monomer) and paired (dimer) Sn atoms at graphene edges. The results reveal that a single Sn atom can catalyze both the growth and etching of graphene by the addition and removal of C atoms respectively. Additionally, the frequencies of the...

The electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO2RR) to CH4 stands as one of the promising paths for resourceful CO2 utilization in meeting the imminent “carbon‐neutral” goal of the near future. Yet, limited success has been witnessed in the development of high‐efficiency catalysts imparting satisfactory methane selectivity at a commercially viable curre...

The rapid development of two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenides has been possible owing to their special structures and remarkable properties. In particular, palladium diselenide (PdSe 2 ) with a novel pentagonal structure and unique physical characteristics have recently attracted extensive research interest. Consequently, tremendou...

The commercial development of lithium ion batteries (LIBs) have been hampered from the uncontrollable growth of Li dendrites and low coulombic efficiency (CE). In this respect, the exploration of advanced host materials to regulate the behavior of Li plating/stripping is an effective strategy to resolve those issues. In this work, we report the mod...

Sn4P3 binary alloy anode has attracted much attention, not only because of the synergistic effect of P and Sn, but also its universal popularity in alkali metal ion batteries (AIBs), including lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs), sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs), and potassium‐ion batteries (PIBs). However, the alkali metal ion (A+) storage and capacity attenu...

Twisted bilayer graphene (tBLG) has recently attracted growing interest due to its unique twist-angle-dependent electronic properties. The preparation of high-quality large-area bilayer graphene with rich rotation angles would be important for the investigation of angle-dependent physics and applications, which, however, is still challenging. Here,...

High theoretical specific energy of rechargeable lithium–oxygen (Li–O2) batteries makes them very promising in the development of long driving range electric vehicles and energy storage on large‐scale. However, the large polarization and poor cycling stability associated with insufficient catalytic cathodes and the insulating nature of discharge pr...

The present paper reports the synthesis of iron-oxide nanoparticles (diameter 12.8±2.2 nm) coated with silica shell doped with paramagnetic Gd(III)-based complexes. The resulting nanoparticles with a silica shell thickness of about 45 nm have an average diameter of 113.1±14.3 nm and feature high transverse and longitudinal relaxivities (356 and 25...

The construction of C-C bonds by coupling reactions is an important process in synthetic chemistry though expensive catalysts are required. Heterogeneous photocatalysis offers a platform for C-C coupling of aromatic halides via hydro-dehalogenation by employing alcohols as the hydrogen donor; however, a designed photocatalyst with high activity and...

Antimony chalcogenides have become a family of promising photoelectric materials for high‐efficiency solar cells. To date, single‐junction solar cells based on individual antimony selenide or sulfide are dominant and show limited photoelectric conversion efficiency. Therefore, great gaps remain for the multiple junction solar cells. Herein, triple‐...

Two-dimensional polymeric graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is a low-cost material with versatile properties that can be enhanced by the introduction of dopant atoms and by changing the degree of polymerization/stoichiometry, which offeres significant benefits for numerous applications. Herein, we investigate the stability of g-C3N4 under electron...

Graphene is a material with unique properties that can be exploited in electronics, catalysis, energy, and bio-related fields. Although, for maximal utilization of this material, high-quality graphene is required at both the growth process and after transfer of the graphene film to the application-compatible substrate. Chemical vapor deposition (CV...

Among various anode candidates for potassium‐ion batteries, carbonaceous materials have attracted significant attention due to their overwhelming advantages including cost effectiveness and environmental benignity. However, the inferior specific capacity and the sluggish reaction kinetics hinder the further development in this realm. Herein we repo...

Rechargeable lithium batteries play an increasingly significant role in our daily lives. Hence, the development of high capacity secondary lithium batteries has become a research hotspot. In the past decade, silicon has been extensively studied as anode material for Li-ion batteries because of its extremely high specific capacity. However, the dram...

Development of highly active, robust electrocatalysts to accelerate the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is crucial and challenging for the practical application of metal‐air batteries. In this effort, a novel and facile self‐jet vapor‐phase growth approach is developed, from which highly dispersive FeNi...

Rechargeable metal-air batteries (MABs) have emerged as promising candidates for portable energy storage technologies because of their favorable energy/power density, safety, and cost-effectiveness. However, the lack of advanced bifunctional electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) restricts the c...

Graphene flakes, nucleated over a polycrystalline graphene film, are shown by Slava V. Rotkin, Mark H. Rümmeli, and co‐workers in article number 2002755 to rotate and synchronize their crystal orientation globally early on during growth. This process causes the flakes to adopt a variety of fractal like shapes. As the flakes continue to grow, they e...

Chemically doped graphene materials are fascinating because these have different desirable attributes with possible synergy. The inert and gapless nature of graphene can be changed by adding a small number of heteroatoms to substitute carbon in the lattice. The doped material may display superior catalytic activities; durable, fast, and selective s...

There is ongoing research in freestanding single-atom thick elemental metal patches, including those suspended in a two-dimensional (2D) material, due to their utility in providing new structural and energetic insight into novel metallic 2D systems. Graphene pores have shown promise as support systems for suspending such patches. This study explore...

In 1665 Christiaan Huygens first noticed how two pendulums, regardless of their initial state, would synchronize. It is now known that the universe is full of complex self-organizing systems, from neural networks to correlated materials. Here, graphene flakes, nucleated over a polycrystalline graphene film, synchronize during growth so as to ultima...

A facile procedure for the synthesis of ultra-fine silicon nanoparticles without the need for a Schlenk vacuum line is presented. The process consists of the production of a (HSiO1.5)n sol–gel precursor based on the polycondensation of low-cost trichlorosilane (HSiCl3), followed by its annealing and etching. The obtained materials were thoroughly c...

Alkaline metal ion batteries, such as lithium‐ion batteries have been increasingly adopted in consumer electronics, electric vehicles, and large power grids because of their high energy density, power density and working voltage, and long cycle life. Phosphorus‐based materials including phosphorus anodes and metal phosphides with high theoretical c...

The sluggish kinetics of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) seriously restrains the practical implementation of fuel cells and metal-air batteries (MABs). While, Pt-based catalysts are well proven to be effective for the ORR process, they are rather expensive. Therefore, it is critical to developing low-cost and advanced catalysts with a rationally de...

Zinc metal anode has garnered a great deal of scientific and technological interest. Nevertheless, major bottlenecks restricting its large‐scale utilization lie in the poor electrochemical stability and unsatisfactory cycling life. Herein, a Janus separator is developed via directly growing vertical graphene (VG) carpet on one side of commercial gl...

The present work introduces combination of superparamagnetic iron oxides (SPIONs) and hexamolybdenum cluster ([{Mo6I8}I6]²⁻) units within amino-decorated silica nanoparticles (SNs) as promising design of the hybrid SNs as efficient cellular contrast and therapeutic agents. The heating generated by SNs doped with SPIONs (Fe3O4@SNs) under alternating...

Mass production of graphene powders affording high quality and environmental benignancy serves as a prerequisite for the practical usage of graphene in multiple energy storage applications. Herein, we exploit a salt-templated CVD approach to harness the direct synthesis of nitrogen-doped graphene (NG) nanosheets and related ink dispersions in a sca...

A R T I C L E I N F O Keywords: Flexible perovskite solar cell Lithium-ion capacitor Self-powered strain sensor Energy harvesting and storage Wearable electronics A B S T R A C T Next-generation wearable electronics is expected to be self-powered by conformable energy storage devices that can provide energy output whenever needed. The emerging ener...

2D intrinsic ferromagnetic materials are highly anticipated in spintronic devices due to their coveted 2D limited magnetism. However, 2D non‐layered intrinsic ferromagnets have received sporadic attention, which is largely attributed to the fact that their synthesis is still a great challenge. Significantly, manganese phosphide (MnP) is a promising...

Although low‐symmetry lattice structure of 2D transition metals is highly anticipated for both fundamental research and potentially distinctive application, it still has not been experimentally realized, which greatly hinders the exploration of the unique properties. Here, ultra‐thin body‐centered‐cubic (bcc) phase molybdenum (Mo) membranes are suc...

Bulk gold's attributes of relative chemical inertness, rarity, relatively low melting point and its beautiful sheen make it a prized material for humans. Recordings suggest it was the first metal employed by humans dating as far back to the late Paleolithic period ≈40 000 BC. However, at the nanoscale gold is expected to present new and exciting pr...

Developing a precise and reproducible bandgap tuning method that enables tailored design of materials is of crucial importance for optoelectronic devices. Towards this end, we report a sphere diameter engineering (SDE) technique to manipulate the bandgap of two-dimensional (2D) materials. A one-to-one correspondence with an ideal linear working cur...

Compared to van der Waals two-dimensional (2D) layers with lateral covalent bonds, metallic bonding systems favor close-packed structures and thus, freestanding 2D metals have remained, for the most part, elusive. However, a number of theoretical studies suggest a number of metals can exist as 2D materials and a few early experiments support this n...

Scalable synthesis of transfer-free graphene over insulators offers exciting opportunity for next-generation electronics and optoelectronics. However, rational design of synthetic protocols to harvest wafer-scale production of directly grown graphene still remains a daunting challenge. Herein we explore a batch synthesis of large-area graphene with...