Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are severely hindered by the low sulfur utilization and short cycling life, especially at high rates. One of the effective solutions to address these problems is to improve the sulfiphilicity of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and the lithiophilicity of the lithium anode. However, it is a great challenge to simultaneously optimize both aspects. Herein, by incorporating the merits of strong absorbability and high conductivity of SnS with good catalytic capability of ZnS, a ZnS-SnS heterojunction coated with a polydopamine-derived N-doped carbon shell (denoted as ZnS-SnS@NC) with uniform cubic morphology was obtained and compared with the ZnS-SnS2@NC heterostructure and its single-component counterparts (SnS@NC and SnS2@NC). Theoretical calculations, ex situ XANES, and in situ Raman spectrum were utilized to elucidate rapid anchoring-diffusion-transformation of LiPSs, inhibition of the shuttling effect, and improvement of the sulfur electrochemistry of bimetal ZnS-SnS heterostructure at the molecular level. When applied as a modification layer coated on the separator, the ZnS-SnS@NC-based cell with optimized lithiophilicity and sulfiphilicity enables desirable sulfur electrochemistry, including high reversibility of 1149 mAh g–1 for 300 cycles at 0.2 C, high rate performance of 661 mAh g–1 at 10 C, and long cycle life with a low fading rate of 0.0126% each cycle after 2000 cycles at 4 C. Furthermore, a favorable areal capacity of 8.27 mAh cm–2 is maintained under high sulfur mass loading of 10.3 mg cm–2. This work furnishes a feasible scheme to the rational design of bimetal sulfides heterostructures and boosts the development of other electrochemical applications.

Palladium nanoparticles covered with liquid-crystal molecules were prepared by UV irradiation of an alcohol solution of palladium(II) acetate in the presence of liquid-crystal molecules. The prepared Pd nanoparticles have an average diameter of 2.5 nm. A twisted nematic (TN) liquid-crystal device (LCD) was fabricated by doping with Pd nanoparticles covered with another kind of nematic liquid-crystal molecules. In this device the sign of the dielectric anisotropy (Δε) of the liquid-crystal molecules, which cover Pd nanoparticles, is opposite to that of nematic liquid-crystal molecules, which work as the host of the device (Δε>0). The TN-LCD cell fabricated in this research exhibits a frequency modulation response to an applied alternative voltage wave form.

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries have been hindered by the shuttle effect and sluggish polysulfide conversion kinetics. Here, a P‐doped nickel tellurium electrocatalyst with Te‐vacancies (P⊂NiTe2−x) anchored on maize‐straw carbon (MSC) nanosheets, served as a functional layer (MSC/P⊂NiTe2−x) on the separator of high‐performance Li–S batteries. The P⊂NiTe2−x electrocatalyst enhanced the intrinsic conductivity, strengthened the chemical affinity for polysulfides, and accelerated sulfur redox conversion. The MSC nanosheets enabled NiTe2 nanoparticle dispersion and Li+ diffusion. In situ Raman and ex situ X‐ray absorption spectra confirmed that the MSC/P⊂NiTe2−x restrained the shuttle effect and accelerated the redox conversion. The MSC/P⊂NiTe2−x‐based cell has a cyclability of 637 mAh g‐1 at 4 C over 1800 cycles with a degradation rate of 0.0139% per cycle, high rate performance of 726 mAh g‐1 at 6 C, and a high areal capacity of 8.47 mAh cm‐2 under a sulfur configuration of 10.2 mg cm‐2, and a low electrolyte/sulfur usage ratio of 3.9. This work demonstrates that vacancy‐induced doping of heterogeneous atoms enables durable sulfur electrochemistry and can impact future electrocatalytic designs related to various energy‐storage applications.