Materials Horizons Blog

Submit your research to the ‘Nanocatalysis’ themed collection

24 Mar 2025

Nanocatalysis

Open call for papers

We are pleased to announce an open call for papers to a themed collection across Nanoscale Horizons and Materials Horizons, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

This collection is being Guest Edited by Marcella Lusardi (Princeton University, USA), Tianyi Ma (RMIT University, Australia), Wee-Jun Ong (Xiamen University Malaysia), Vivek Polshettiwar (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), India), Jennifer Strunk (Technical University of Munich, Germany) and Huabin Zhang (KAUST, Saudi Arabia).

Nanocatalysis themed collection open call graphic

Nanocatalysis represents a transformative frontier in nanoscience and nanotechnology, profoundly advancing the field of catalysis. The integration of nanostructures enables precise control over the dispersion of active sites and the optimization of diffusion pathways for reaction species. Tailored control of particle size, crystal facets, and the hierarchical assembly of nanoparticles has unlocked unprecedented catalytic activity and selectivity, driving innovation in catalyst design.

Moreover, the tunable thermal, piezoelectric, photo- and electrochemical properties of nanomaterials have expanded their utility, facilitating groundbreaking applications in energy and environmental domains. These include solar water splitting, C1 conversion processes, H2O2 production, plastic valorization and reforming, nitrogen fixation, nitrate reduction, methane conversion, and organic chemical synthesis—critical challenges of global significance. In the context of depleting fossil fuels, rising atmospheric CO2 levels, and the urgent need for sustainable clean solutions, nanocatalysis has emerged as a pivotal driver in chemical synthesis, environmental remediation, and clean energy technologies.

Open for submissions until 16 July 2025

This special-themed collection aims to provide a comprehensive platform for showcasing the latest breakthroughs and emerging trends in catalysis, with a focus on the interface at materials and nanoscience. The scope of the collection is intentionally broad, including but not limited to:

Design, synthesis, and characterization of nanostructured catalysts
Mechanistic insights through computational modelling
Innovative catalyst synthesis methods
Innovative applications of (nano)catalysts
Energy catalysis
High quantum efficiency photocatalysis, photothermal catalysis, photoelectrocatalysis, electrocatalysis, plasma catalysis, thermal catalysis, piezoelectric photocatalysis
Catalyst discovery via machine learning and artificial intelligence methods
Active site or structure elucidation under excited state conditions/in situ operando techniques

Meet the Guest Editors

Marcella Lusardi (Princeton University, USA)

Marcella Lusardi joined Princeton University as an Assistant Professor in Chemical and Biological Engineering and the Materials Institute in July 2022. Prior to that, she worked on designing next generation diesel emissions catalysts as a research scientist at BASF (2021-2022), and conducted postdoctoral research in Prof. Mark Davis’s group at Caltech (2018-2021). Her group’s research centers on molecular-scale materials design to address pressing challenges in sustainable chemistry, with a primary focus in catalytic and adsorption applications.

Tianyi Ma (RMIT University, Australia)

Tianyi Ma is a RMIT University Distinguished Professor, an Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry, and Clarivate’s Global Highly Cited Researcher. He is Director of ARC Industrial Transformation Hub for Intelligent Energy Efficiency in Future Protected Cropping (E2Crop), and Research Director of Centre for Atomaterials and Nanomanufacturing (CAN). His international standing is evidenced by >400 publications in top-tier journals with an H-index of 95 and >40,000 citations. His ground-breaking research has been acknowledged by internationally recognised experts and authorities via 2024 Prime Minister’s Prize for Science – the Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year, Australian Academy of Science’s Le Févre Medal, Young Tall Poppy Science Award, ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, and Horizon Prize of Royal Society of Chemistry.

Wee-Jun Ong (Xiamen University Malaysia)

Wee-Jun Ong received his B.Eng. and Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Monash University. He is a Professor and Assistant Dean in School of Energy and Chemical Engineering at Xiamen University Malaysia. Starting from 2021, he serves as the Director of Center of Excellence for NaNo Energy & Catalysis Technology (CONNECT). Since September 2024, I have been an Adjunct Professor of College of Engineering at Korea University. Previously, he was a scientist at Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore. In 2019, he was a visiting scientist at Technische Universität Dresden and a visiting professor at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. His research interests include nanomaterials for photo(electro)catalytic and electrochemical H2O splitting, CO2 reduction, alcohol oxidation, H2O2 production, plastic reforming, and N2 fixation as well as H2 storage.

Vivek Polshettiwar (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), India)

Prof. Vivek Polshettiwar research interests are within the domain of advanced nanomaterials and nanocatalysis for harvesting solar energy and the transformation of carbon dioxide into value-added chemicals and fuels. The work of his group in the nanocatalysis realms of “Black Gold” and “Defects” chemistry represents a quintessential example of how fundamental science can drive innovation in applied research. His group’s detailed exploration of plasmonic photocatalysis and defect engineering offers new perspectives on material design, catalysis, and sustainability, paving the way for future research that continues to explore the vast potential of nanomaterials in solving some of the world’s most pressing environmental and energy challenges. He has published nearly 150 articles and also filed 12 national and international patent/patent applications.

Jennifer Strunk (Technical University of Munich, Germany)

Prof. Strunk conducts research in the fields of heterogeneous catalysis and photocatalysis. The aim is to activate small, stable molecules, such as the recycling of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into chemical production and the activation of nitrogen for the synthesis of basic chemicals. The focus is particularly on understanding the elementary physical and chemical steps driven by light and heat in order to enable scaling up from the laboratory to industry.

Huabin Zhang (KAUST, Saudi Arabia)

Dr. Huabin Zhang obtained his Ph.D. from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. After graduation, he remained at the university as an assistant professor before moving to Japan to conduct postdoctoral research at the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Tsukuba. In 2017, he joined Nanyang Technological University as a research fellow. Since 2021, he has been an assistant professor at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Dr. Zhang’s research primarily focuses on the development of single-atom catalysts for photo- and electrocatalysis, including water splitting and CO₂ reduction. Dr. Zhang has been recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher (Top 1% worldwide) by Web of Science for four consecutive years (2020–2024). He has also been honored as a National (China) Overseas High-Level Young Talent and a One-Hundred-Talents recipient at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In addition to his research, Dr. Zhang serves as an Associate Editor for Science Advances and as an editorial board member for SusMat, Nano-Micro Letters, and Carbon Energy.

Did you know?

At Materials Horizons, our themed collections are built by collaboration between our Guest Editors and expert Editorial Board and internal editors. Our Guest Editors guide the scope and curate the contributions in our collections but all submissions are handled through peer review as usual by our team of Publishing Editors in consultation with the Scientific Editors of the journal. This means that as an author you receive a consistent experience, and as a reader you can trust the quality of the science being presented.

How to submit

This open call is open for primary research only. Please note that primary research is accepted in the form of Communications for both journals and requires a ‘New Concepts statement’ to help ascertain the significance of the research. General guidance and examples can be found here.

Please note that all submissions will be subject to our standard rigorous peer review process, including initial editorial assessment as to suitability for the journal. If accepted, your article will be published in a regular issue of the journal and added to the online collection to ensure fast publication while providing additional visibility.

We sincerely hope that you will be able to accept our invitation to contribute to this exciting collection on such an important topic.

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Horizons Symposium: Polymers at the human interface – photo gallery

16 Dec 2024

By Natalie Cotterell, Development Editor.

In November 2024, Nanoscale Horizons and Materials Horizons held a joint symposium at NCNST in Beijing, China on the topic of polymers at the human interface. The symposium covered a wide range of topics from sensors and theranostics to bioelectronics and drug delivery, and we were joined by many of our Nanoscale Horizons and Materials Horizons editors and community who gave some engaging talks. We would like to thank everyone that took part and joined us in Beijing for this fantastic symposium. We have selected a few of our favourite photos from the event that we would like to share. Feel free to browse the gallery below!

Why not also check out our post on WeChat reflecting on the successful event!

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Congratulations to the presentation prize winners at the MATSUS OMIEC symposium

03 Dec 2024

By Natalie Cotterell, Development Editor.

Materials Horizons and Journal of Materials Chemistry C were pleased to sponsor oral presentation awards at the recent MATSUS Fall 2024 symposium on understanding mixed ionic-electronic conductors #OMIEC. Congratulations to Bryan Paulsen, University of Notre Dame, USA and Maximilian Horn, University of Bern, Switzerland for being awarded a prize for their presentations. Find out more about our winners below:

Maximilian obtained his B.Sc. degree in Chemistry from the University of Würzburg in 2021 and then moved to Hamburg for his Master’s studies. In November 2023, he joined the research group of Natalie Banerji in Bern, Switzerland, for a PhD project. His research focusses on chemical doping of organic semiconducting polymers and photo(electro)catalysis.

Bryan is a Jesuit priest and assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Notre Dame. He earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Trine University, and his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Minnesota, under the direction Prof. C. Daniel Frisbie. He was a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University under the direction of Prof. Jonathan Rivnay. As part of his religious formation, he also earned a Masters of Arts in Social Philosophy from Loyola University Chicago, and a Masters of Divinity from the Jesuit School of Theology – Santa Clara University. At Notre Dame his lab develops organic mixed ionic-electronic conductor (OMIEC) materials and devices for bioelectronic, chemical sensing, and energy management applications. He has particular interests in fundamental structure-property investigations leveraging in situ and operando synchrotron X-ray studies, and the application of hysteretic transport in OMIECs to enable innovative device functionality.

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Closed-loop 3D printing based on dynamic chemistry

27 Nov 2024

By Kostas Parkatzidis, Community Board member.

3D printing has revolutionized the production of polymer-based materials, with the development of numerous printing techniques that continuously enhance speed, resolution, and accessibility. Among the most significant advancements is light-based 3D printing, which utilizes photopolymerization reactions to solidify inks, offering precise spatiotemporal control over the printing process. However, light-based 3D printing primarily relies on uncontrolled polymerization of (meth)acrylate and epoxide monomers/ cross-linkers, which yield non-functional, non-recyclable materials. To fully exploit the potential of 3D printing, there is growing interest in integrating advanced chemistries, such as dynamic chemistry, that enable the fabrication of functional materials capable of post-printing modifications in shape, properties, and functionality. Most polymer-based objects created through current 3D printing techniques cannot be chemically recycled due to the chemical inertness of the materials and the irreversible polymerization processes involved. Thus, it is imperative to incorporate new chemistries into 3D printing that enable the fabrication of advanced, functional, and chemically recyclable materials at the end of their lifecycle.

In a recent work by Du Prez and Nguyen, a closed-loop 3D printing process utilizing dynamic chemistry was reported. The authors synthesized an acrylate photocurable polymeric material based on dynamic β-amino ester cross-linkers, which can be used as an ink for 3D printing. Importantly, this material can undergo decross-linking via a transesterification reaction, resulting in the depolymerization of the formed polymer network. This process is not only reversible, enabling the making and unmaking of polymers, but it also operates under highly appealing and relatively mild conditions.

Figure 1: a) Chemical overview of the polymerization and depolymerization reactions of the dynamic network and b) closed-loop 3D printing. Image reproduced from DOI: 10.1039/D4MH00823E with permission from the Royal Society of Chemistry.

The team first synthesized an acrylate-terminated β-amino ester-containing cross-linker, which serves as a building block for the formation of a dynamic polymer network. This cross-linker was prepared via a one-step aza-Michael addition reaction. The process is straightforward and utilizes commercially available reagents, making the material easily adaptable for other researchers. These low-molecular-weight diacrylate polymers undergo photo-induced free radical polymerization, resulting in the formation of a dynamic polymer network.

This dynamic nature of the polymeric network enables thermomechanical reprocessing of the material. To demonstrate this aspect, the authors used compression molding (at 150 °C under 2 tons of pressure for 30 minutes) for reprocessability. The recycling procedure was repeated three times, with the material showing a slight increase in shear modulus and activation energy, while maintaining stable thermal properties and chemical integrity. The increase in temperature results in a reduction of cross-link density, demonstrating the role of dissociative exchange via (retro) aza-Michael addition. In contrast, polymeric networks without dynamic bonds did not exhibit any reprocessability, highlighting the promise of dynamic chemistry in enabling reprocessable materials.

In the next step, to demonstrate more advanced chemical recycling of this dynamic network, the team employed another reaction (transesterification) using a commercially available methacrylate with a hydroxyl moiety (hydroxyethyl methacrylate) as a decross-linker. The hydroxyl group of this functional methacrylate reacts with the β-amino ester, resulting in the decross-linking of the network and its depolymerization. This reaction is temperature-dependent and requires an optimized amount of decross-linker to achieve a high depolymerization yield. Notably, the depolymerization reaction proceeds without the need for any catalyst or solvent, making the procedure even more appealing. Upon depolymerization of the polymer network, the resulting mixture consists of methacrylate-terminated compounds, as confirmed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. These compounds can be further employed for another cycle of photo-curing, enabling the development of curable-depolymerizable dynamic materials.

In the final part, the team demonstrated the translation of this concept into closed-loop 3D printing using the dynamic photocurable resin. Multiple printing cycles were performed with recycled photocurable resin to assess the repeatability of this procedure. The resulting samples exhibited consistent shapes and appearances for at least three cycles, thus demonstrating repeatable printability after chemical recycling.

Overall, this study elegantly combines fundamental aspects of dynamic polymer chemistry and its application in 3D printing, further enhancing interest in dynamic chemistry for both functional and recyclable materials.

To find out more, please read:

Direct restoration of photocurable cross-linkers for repeated light-based 3D printing of covalent adaptable networks
Loc Tan Nguyen and Filip E. Du Prez
Mater. Horiz., 2024, DOI:10.1039/D4MH00823E

About the blogger

Dr. Kostas Parkatzidis is a Swiss National Science Foundation Postdoc Fellow in the group of Professor Zhenan Bao at Stanford University (United States), working on the molecular design of polymer-based skin-inspired materials for various applications. Kostas obtained his PhD from ETH Zurich (Switzerland) under the supervision of Professor Athina Anastasaki where he focused on the development of advanced polymer synthesis and chemical recycling methodologies. He also holds MSc in Organic Chemistry and BSc in Materials Science and Engineering obtained from the University of Crete (Greece). Since 2023, Kostas has served as a Materials Horizons Community Board member.

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Unveiling Crystalline Complexity: How Structural Disorder Shapes Heteroanionic Materials

18 Nov 2024

By Raul Marquez, Community Board member.

Perovskite oxynitrides are intriguing materials with significant relevance in photoelectrochemistry and catalysis. Their crystallinity is often simplified using high-symmetry unit cells as a convenient approximation. However, this approach fails to capture the complex local atomic displacements of anions and neighboring cations caused by the differing ionic radii of oxygen and nitrogen anions. A recent study by the Seitz Group provides a more nuanced understanding of perovskite oxynitrides’ true crystallinity, using a newly synthesized calcium tungsten oxynitride, CaW(O,N)₃, as a model system. The authors leverage experimental and computational techniques to explore its crystal structure, focusing on distortion, anion ordering, and symmetry. This study highlights four key findings:

CaW(O,N)₃exhibits structural distortion. The study marks the first successful synthesis of CaW(O,N)₃. Using a combination of density functional theory (DFT), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and neutron diffraction (ND), the authors reveal that this material adopts an orthorhombic Pnma average structure. This structure exhibits significant octahedral distortion and preferential anion site occupancy, highlighting its deviation from a purely symmetric model.

Symmetry models for perovskite oxynitrides need to account for disorder. The authors demonstrate that traditional high-symmetry models fail to capture the full complexity of CaW(O,N)₃. Instead, a low-symmetry model with a P1 space group—which incorporates a larger unit cell and random anion positioning—better represents the disorder inherent in the crystal. This disorder forms a “polymorphous network,” where the observed high symmetry is only an average, masking the true lower local symmetry of CaW(O,N)₃.

The structural disorder can be extended to other perovskite oxynitrides. The structural disorder observed in CaW(O,N)₃ was also identified in its analog, SrW(O,N)₃. Like CaW(O,N)₃, the authors obtained a better representation of the structural disorder in SrW(O,N)₃by applying similar low-symmetry models, suggesting that such disorder is a common characteristic across perovskite oxynitrides.

Structural disorder in perovskite oxynitrides causes changes in electronic properties. Comparative X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) revealed differences in electronic structures between Ca- and Sr-based perovskite oxynitrides. SrW(O,N)₃exhibits stronger covalency between its anions and W 5d orbitals. These differences are attributed to the distinct electronic configurations and ionic radii of Ca²⁺ and Sr²⁺, which alter the interaction of W with neighboring anions.

Figure 1. summarises the study using CaW(O,N)3, as a model system. Experimental and computational techniques are used to explore its crystal structure, focusing on distortion, anion ordering, and symmetry. Image reproduced from DOI: 10.1039/D4MH00317A with permission from the Royal Society of Chemistry.

In summary, this study provides a comprehensive evaluation of the crystallinity and electronic properties of perovskite oxynitrides, emphasizing the importance of structural disorder. This work is a must-read for researchers studying heteroanionic materials, offering guidance on characterizing their structural and electronic properties through essential experimental and computational methods. Furthermore, it underscores the need for more sophisticated models to accurately represent these materials’ symmetry and local structure, accounting for the inherent complexities introduced by mixed anion occupancy. These findings are crucial for optimizing perovskite oxynitrides’ performance in catalytic and photoelectrochemical applications, where electronic and structural properties are pivotal in their performance.

To find out more, please read:

Synthesis and symmetry of perovskite oxynitride CaW(O,N)₃Matthew E. Sweers, Tzu-chen Liu, Jiahong Shen, Bingzhang Lu, John W. Freeland, Christopher Wolverton, Gabriela B. Gonzalez Aviles, and Linsey C. Seitz
Mater. Horiz., 2024,11, 4104-4114 DOI: 10.1039/D4MH00317A

About the blogger

Raul A. Marquez is a Ph.D. in Chemistry candidate working with Prof. C. Buddie Mullins at The University of Texas at Austin and a Materials Horizons Community Board member. His research focuses on understanding the transformations of electrocatalytic materials and developing advanced characterization methods for energy storage and conversion technologies. Follow Raul’s latest research on LinkedIn.

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Open call for papers – Soft wearable sensors

10 Oct 2024

By Natalie Cotterell, Development Editor.

Soft wearable sensors

Open call for papers

We are pleased to announce an open call for papers to a themed collection across Nanoscale Horizons and Materials Horizons, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

This collection is being guest edited by Professors John Rogers (Northwestern University, USA), Wenlong Cheng (University of Sydney, Australia), Alina Rwei (TU Delft, Netherlands), Dae-Hyeong Kim (Seoul National University, South Korea) and Nanshu Lu (University of Texas at Austin, USA).

Next-generation soft wearable sensors hold significant promise for revolutionizing healthcare and human-computer interaction by providing seamless integration between the human body and electronic devices. These advanced systems, characterized by their flexibility, stretchability, and biocompatibility, enable continuous monitoring of physical parameters such as body motion, physiological parameters like heart rate, and biochemical markers like electrolytes and cortisol levels in sweat in real-time. This real-time data collection can lead to more personalized and timely medical interventions, enabling a shift from hospital-centred healthcare to patient-centred healthcare.

Beyond healthcare, next-generation soft wearable sensors have applications in fitness, sports, and augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR), paving the way for innovative approaches to human performance enhancement and interactive technologies. They offer significant advancements in human-machine interaction, enhancing experiences in the metaverse and beyond. This special issue aims to highlight the latest research, developments, and innovative applications in soft wearable sensors from a materials and nanotechnology perspective, and we believe your work would make a valuable contribution to this discussion.

This special-themed collection aims to provide a platform to showcase the recent progress and challenges in the field of soft wearable sensors addressing the exciting current challenges in biosensors, bioelectronics, medicine, healthcare, AR/VR and soft robotics. The scope of the collection is broad, including but are not limited to:

Soft wearable materials and design
Innovative fabrication methods of soft wearable sensors
Materials and technologies for enhanced sensor performance
Integration of sensors with wearable systems
Significance of machine learning and artificial intelligence for remote diagnostics and automatic decision making
Applications in health monitoring, rehabilitation, AR/VR and sports
Challenges and future directions in the development of soft wearable sensors

Open for submissions until 14 March 2025

How to submit

Submissions should fit within the scope of either Nanoscale Horizons or Materials Horizons. Please visit the journal webpages for more information on their scope, standards, article types and author guidelines. We invite authors to select the journal that best suits their submission. Please note that primary research is accepted in the form of Communications for both journals and require a ‘New Concepts statement’ to help ascertain the significance of the research. General guidance and examples can be found here.

For Nanoscale Horizons, we welcome exceptionally high-quality studies across all fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology in the form of Communications and Review-type articles (Reviews and Focus articles).

For Materials Horizons, we welcome exceptionally high-quality materials science in the form of Communications and Review-type articles (Reviews, Opinions and Focus articles).

We strongly encourage you to submit an original research article. If you are interested in submitting a review-type article, please contact the Editorial Office at materialshorizons-rsc@rsc.org in the first instance with a proposed title and abstract, as initial approval is required before submission to avoid topic overlap and ensure that we cover topics in need to review.

When ready please submit your manuscript directly to the submissions platform for Nanoscale Horizons or Materials Horizons where our Editors will assess as per the scope and standards of the journal. Please add a note in the ‘Comments to the Editor’ and ‘Themed issues’ sections of the submission that this is a submission to the ‘Soft wearable sensors’ themed collection in response to the Open Call. Please note that all submissions will be subject to our standard rigorous peer review process, including initial editorial assessment as to suitability for the journal and maintain before peer review, if found appropriate. If accepted, your article would be published in a usual issue of the journal and added to the online collection for extra visibility.

We sincerely hope that you will be able to accept our invitation to contribute to this exciting collection on such an important topic.

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Congratulations to the poster prize winners at MAKRO 2024

09 Oct 2024

By Natalie Cotterell, Development Editor.

We were delighted to support poster prize awards along with RSC Applied Polymers and Polymer Chemistry at the recent GDCh Makro conference in Dresden, Germany which was held from 16 – 18 September 2024. Congratulations to our winners, Annalena Groß and Ronja Bodesheimer. Find out more about them below.

Annalena Groß studied chemistry at the University of Freiburg, Germany, specializing in polymer science. Her master’s thesis focused on the characterization and phase behavior of polystyrene microgels, under the guidance of Prof. Bartsch. Following her graduation, she held a position as a research assistant at NEUSTART KULTUR. Keen to re-enter academic research, Annalena Groß started her PhD in February 2024 in the junior research group of Dr. Céline Calvino at the University of Freiburg. Her work focuses on the development of photo-thermo processes for the reversible crosslinking of polymers.

Annalena received a prize for her poster entitled, ‘Exploring the Multiresponsiveness of Quinolinone Motifs for Reversible Polymerizations’

Ronja Bodesheimer received a Bachelor in Science in Applied Chemistry from BTU Cottbus Senftenberg Germany in 2020 with a thesis entitled ‘Synthesis and characterisation of hydrogels with potential anti-biofouling activity’. Ronja then received a Master of Science in chemical engineering from HTW Dresden, Germany in 2021 with the thesis ‘Synthesis and characterisation of amphiphic star-based block copolymers for homogenous connetworks’ before becoming a research associate in the InnoVET project CLOU at HTW Dresden. Since 2022, Ronja is a research associate and PhD student in the InsBIOration project at IPF Dresden and TU Dresden in Germany.

Ronja received a prize for their poster entitled, ‘Bio-inspired polymer metallisation with the adhesion promoter dopamine’

Please join us in congratulating our winners!

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Materials Horizons 10th Anniversary Cover Showcase

17 Sep 2024

By Ash Hyde, Editorial Assistant.

As you may know, Materials Horizons is celebrating their 10th anniversary! To join in the celebrations, we have asked authors to find creative ways to add a ’10’ to the cover artwork and are excited to show you the results in our cover showcase.

Check out the covers in our showcase below and keep an eye out for additions!

Explore all featured articles in our 10th anniversary cover articles collection

Ovonic threshold switching-based artificial afferent neurons for thermal in-sensor computing	Non-Hermitian metagrating for perfect absorption of elastic waves
A dual-responsive microemulsion with macroscale superlubricity and largely switchable friction	Recent advances using MXenes in biomedical applications
Inverse design of Bézier curve-based mechanical metamaterials with programmable negative thermal expansion and negative Poisson’s ratio via a data augmented deep autoencoder	Deep generative spatiotemporal learning for integrating fracture mechanics in composite materials: inverse design, discovery, and optimization
Dual-targeted fluorescent probe for tracking polarity and phase transition processes during lipophagy	A highly stable full-polymer electrochemical deionization system: dopant engineering & mechanism study
Metainterfaces with mechanical, thermal, and active programming properties based on programmable orientation-distributed biometric architectonics	*From stress to charge: investigating the piezoelectric response of solvate ionic liquid in structural energy storage composites*

Backscattering silicon spectrometer (BASIS):sixteen years in advanced materials characterisation

Leveraging volatile memristors in neuromorphic computing:from materials to system implementation

Thermochromic hydrogel-based energy efficient smart windows: fabrication, mechanisms, and advancements

Enhanced environmental adaptability of sandwich-like MoS2/Ag/WC nanomultilayer films via Ag nanoparticle diffusion-dominated defect repair

Epsilon-nera-zero thin films in a dual-functional system for thermal infrared camouflage and thermal management within the atmospheric window

Fluid mediated communication among flexible micro-posts in chemically reactive solutions

A transparent p-type semiconductor designed via a polarizability-enhanced strongly correlated insulator oxide matrix

Functional antimicrobial peptide-loaded 3D scaffolds for infected bone defect treatment with AI and multidimensional printing

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Congratulations to the CEMDI oral prize winners!

08 Jul 2024

By Geraldine Hay, Deputy Editor.

Materials Horizons, Digital Discovery and MSDE were delighted to sponsor three oral prizes at the 2nd Annual Computational Energy Materials Design Infrastructure (CEMDI) symposium held in Montreal, Canada from 27 – 29 May. Congratulations to Parastoo Agharezaei, Yasser Salah Eddine Bouchareb and Mehdi Shamekhi!

Find out more about our winners below:

Parastoo Agharezaei

Parastoo Agharezaei is a researcher in the field of materials science and engineering, holding a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Tehran, awarded in 2017. She pursued a Joint Master’s degree with an Erasmus Mundus excellence full scholarship, earning dual Master’s degrees in Materials Science from TU Darmstadt, Germany, and in Physics with a minor in Quantum Modeling of Nanomaterials from the University of Liege, Belgium, in 2020. Currently, Parastoo is advancing her expertise in Computational Materials Science through a Ph.D. program at INRS, University of Quebec, focusing her doctoral thesis on the design of alloy catalysts for ammonia production using Density Functional Theory and Machine Learning.

Title of presentation: Design of CuNi-based single-doped alloy catalysts for ammonia production via Density Functional Theory

Mehdi Shamekhi

Mehdi Shamekhi is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of
Physics at Concordia University, working under the supervision of Prof.
Gilles H. Peslherbe on the computational design and investigation of bimetallic
alloys for the electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR). Mehdi employs a combination of machine
learning and computational chemistry to advance his research, using
machine learning algorithms to screen the chemical space of bimetallic alloy
catalysts and identify promising candidates for further characterization
via density functional theory. Detailed knowledge of the electronic structure
of these catalysts indeed enables the design of catalysts that are both
active and selective toward the NRR, contributing to the development of efficient
catalysts for sustainable ammonia synthesis. Mehdi aspires to continue
his research in computational chemistry and electrocatalysis, aiming to make
significant contributions to the field of sustainable energy solutions. His longterm
goal is to develop innovative materials that can address global energy
challenges through green chemistry and advanced computational methods.

Title of presentation: Machine learning assisted screening and DFT characterization of bimetallic alloy catalysts for the nitrogen reduction reaction

Yasser Salah Eddine Bouchareb

Yasser Salah Eddine Bouchareb is currently pursuing a Ph.D. program at INRS, University of Quebec, working under the supervision of Prof. Kulbir Ghuman, and co-supervised by Prof. Jonathan Shock, on the design of alloy catalysts for CO2 PhotoCapture using Density Functional Theory and Machine Learning.

Title of presentation: Screening binary alloys for CO2 photo capture using GNN

Congratulations to our winners!

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Discover our 2024 Materials Horizons Emerging Investigators

17 Jun 2024

By Natalie Cotterell, Development Editor.

Materials Horizons Emerging Investigator series

Discover our 2024 Emerging Investigators

Since the launch of Materials Horizons, the journal has had a clear vision to publish exceptionally high-quality work whilst acting as a resource to researchers working at all career levels. We continue to be impressed by the quality of the research published and at the same time are looking for new ways of recognising and promoting the outstanding authors behind articles published in the journal.

The Materials Horizons Emerging Investigators Series showcases early-career researchers who have published exceptional work in the journal. The initiative started in 2020 and so far we have featured over 40 up-and-coming researchers in the series. For each issue of the journal, the Editorial Office and Editorial Board select an Emerging Investigator from a pool of eligible authors, highlighting the researcher and their recently published work in an interview Editorial.

Discover our 2024 Materials Horizons Emerging Investigators so far and read their publications below:

Dr Jie Xu

Argonne National Laboratory, USA

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Real-time correlation of crystallization and segmental order in conjugated polymers’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH00956D)

Professor Dr Wee-Jun Ong

Center of Excellence for NaNo Energy & Catalysis Technology (CONNECT), Xiamen University, Malaysia

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Isotype heterojunction: tuning the heptazine/triazine phase of crystalline nitrogen-rich C₃N₅towards multifunctional photocatalytic applications’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH01115A)

Professor Dr Hai-Bo Zhao

National Engineering Laboratory for Eco-Friendly Polymer Materials (Sichuan), College of Chemistry, Sichuan University

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Controllable proton-reservoir ordered gel towards reversible switching and reliable electromagnetic interference shielding’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH01795H)

Associate Professor Dr Xuhui Zhang

Jiangnan University, China

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Soft–hard dual nanophases: a facile strategy for polymer strengthening and toughening’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH01763J)

Professor Zhengbao Yang

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Exploring the Mpemba effect: a universal ice pressing enables porous ceramics’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH01869E)

Professor Yiyang Li

University of Michigan, USA

Read the Editorial

Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Oxygen tracer diffusion in amorphous hafnia films for resistive memory’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/d3mh02113k)

Professor Jingjing Duan

Nanjing University of Science and Technology, China

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Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Unlock flow-type reversible aqueous Zn–CO₂batteries’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D4MH00219A)

Professor Francesca Santoro

Forschungszentrum Jülich and RWTH Aachen, Germany

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Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘An organic brain-inspired platform with neurotransmitter closed-loop control, actuation and reinforcement learning’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D3MH02202A)

Dr Sahnawaz Ahmed

National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Kolkata, India

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Read the Emerging Investigator article,‘Chemically fueled dynamic switching between assembly-encoded emissions’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D4MH00251B)

Professor Edison Huixiang Ang

National Institute of Education/Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

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Read the Emerging Investigator article, ‘Construction of phase-separated Co/MnO synergistic catalysts and integration onto sponge for rapid removal of multiple contaminants’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D4MH00285G)

We would like to congratulate all our 2024 Emerging Investigators so far for being selected to feature. We hope that you enjoy reading their impactful publications and finding out more about them in their Editorial interviews. Keep an eye out for our next Emerging Investigators through 2024

Are you an independent researcher within 10 years of your PhD or within 5 years of your independent career? Submit your best research to Materials Horizons to be considered to feature in one of our next issues!

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