Lightweight, flexible, and electrically conductive thin films with high electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness are highly desirable for next-generation portable and wearable electronic devices. Here, spin spray layer-by-layer (SSLbL) to rapidly assemble Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene-carbon nanotube (CNT) composite films is shown and their potential for EMI shielding is demonstrated. The SSLbL technique allows strategic combinations of nanostructured materials and polymers providing a rich platform for developing hierarchical architectures with desirable cross-functionalities including controllable transparency, thickness, and conductivity, as well as high stability and flexibility. These semi-transparent LbL MXene-CNT composite films show high conductivities up to 130 S cm −1 and high specific shielding effectiveness up to 58 187 dB cm 2 g −1 , which is attributed to both the excellent electrical conductivity of the conductive fillers (i.e., MXene and CNT) and the enhanced absorption with the LbL architecture of the films. Remarkably, these values are among the highest reported values for flexible and semi-transparent composite thin films. This work could offer new solutions for next-generation EMI shielding challenges.

2D graphitic carbon nitride (g‐C3N4) nanosheets are a promising negative electrode candidate for sodium‐ion batteries (NIBs) owing to its easy scalability, low cost, chemical stability, and potentially high rate capability. However, intrinsic g‐C3N4 exhibits poor electronic conductivity, low reversible Na‐storage capacity, and insufficient cyclability. DFT calculations suggest that this could be due to a large Na+ ion diffusion barrier in the innate g‐C3N4 nanosheet. A facile one‐pot heating of a mixture of low‐cost urea and asphalt is strategically applied to yield stacked multilayer C/g‐C3N4 composites with improved Na‐storage capacity (about 2 times higher than that of g‐C3N4, up to 254 mAh g−1), rate capability, and cyclability. A C/g‐C3N4 sodium‐ion full cell (in which sodium rhodizonate dibasic is used as the positive electrode) demonstrates high Coulombic efficiency (ca. 99.8 %) and a negligible capacity fading over 14 000 cycles at 1 A g−1.

Electron acceptor degradation of organic solar cells is considered a main contributor to performance instability and a barrier for the commercialization of organic solar cells. Here, we selectively remove the electron acceptors on the surface of donor:acceptor blend films using a tape stripping technique. The near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectrum reveals that only 6% of the acceptor component is left on the blend film surface after the tape stripping, creating a polymer-rich surface. The optimized morphology avoids direct contact of electron acceptors with the oxygen and water molecules from the film surface. Moreover, the polymer-rich surface dramatically enhances the adhesion between the photoactive layer and the top metal electrode, which prevents delamination of the electrode. Our results finally demonstrate that the selective removal of electron acceptors near the top electrode facilitates the realization of highly durable organic solar cells that can even function under water without encapsulation.

Despite huge improvements in power conversion efficiencies of perovskite solar cells, the technology is still limited by fill factors at around 80%. Here, we report perovskite solar cells having exceptionally high fill factors of 85% and enhanced opencircuit voltage without sacrificing short-circuit current through a polymer-capped solventannealing process assisted by a hot air blower. During the solvent-annealing, the perovskite surface flattens and the perovskite grains agglomerate into micrometer-sized clusters having enlarged α-phase crystallites, while the δ-phase simultaneously disappears. The optimized structure reduces energetic disorder and trap-assisted recombination in the perovskite layer, resulting in an enhanced efficiency from 18.2% to 19.8% and improved device lifetime. Our results provide a pathway to increase the device efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells, and have the potential to stimulate research on scalable polycrystal perovskite layer fabrication in optoelectronic devices.

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