Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have emerged as an effective and promising interface engineering approach to enhance the performance and stability in perovskite solar cells (PVSCs). In recent years, they have gained significant attention due to their advantages of minimal light absorption, low material consumption, simple processing, and conformal coating. By optimizing the energy level alignment, suppressing interface defects, boosting charge extraction, and improving resistance to moisture and oxygen, highly efficient and stable PVSCs have been successfully achieved. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the development and progress of SAMs for interfacial engineering in PVSCs. We specifically discuss strategies for growing high-quality SAM films on various interfaces with desired properties, highlighting the key principles for selecting, designing, and optimizing SAMs for different interfaces in the context of device fabrication. Finally, we offer perspectives on the future development of SAMs to further enhance PVSC performance and stability, thereby advancing their commercialization.

Chalcogenide phase-change materials are capable of switching rapidly between a disordered amorphous phase and an ordered crystalline phase, associating with the pronounced differences in electrical and optical properties. The resistance contrast is widely used for data storage in phase-change memories (PCMs). As the most promising emerging non-volatile memory, PCMs have been intensively explored for embedded data storage applications. The key challenge of embedded PCMs (ePCMs) is to realize reliable electrical switching performance in an environment with high thermal budget, in which the thermal stability of chalcogenide phase-change materials is crucial to retain the encoded information. We present a review of the material engineering of chalcogenide phase-change materials by doping to address the high thermal stability challenge. The mechanism of performance optimization and industrial applications of the chalcogenide materials are also included, which are important for the development of ePCMs with high thermal stability and excellent performance.

Solid-state polymer electrolytes (SPEs) coupling with high-specific-energy cathodes/anodes are candidate schemes for meeting the safety and energy density needs of next generation lithium batteries due to the reinforced mechanical/chemical and electrochemical stability. However, many pressing challenges, such as low ionic conductivity, large interfacial resistance and side reactions, hindering their practical applications in solid-state lithium batteries (SSLBs). Crosslinked SPEs as one of the most attractive structures exhibit many advantages, such as superior mechanical strength, thermal/chemical stability, and reduced crystallinity. The design/synthesis strategies of crosslinked SPEs and how do the geometric structural parameters affect electrochemical performance of the SPEs are not fully understood. This review comprehensively summarizes the very recent advances of crosslinked SPEs for SSLBs by discussing the related publications, which involves physical and chemical crosslinking strategies. The selection of crosslinked monomers and reaction type are classified in detail. The relationships between crosslinking structures and physical/electrochemical properties at molecular level are comprehensive analyzed. Finally, the challenges and future prospects of crosslinked SPEs in this rapidly evolving field are outlined. Overall, this review is expected to serve as a guide for designing high-performance crosslinked SPEs, and will receive widespread attention in the field of binders, separators, hydrogels, electronic skin and engineering plastics.

Three-dimensional printing technology provides substantial developmental advantages for silicone rubber, such as enhanced precision, the ability of fabricating intricate structures, and accelerated manufacturing processes. This review first offers an overview of 3D printing technology and its commonly used materials, with a particular emphasis on diverse materials introduced in recent years, especially those suitable for high-performance elastomers such as silicone rubber. It then comprehensively analyzes the characteristics, advantages, and challenges of 3D printed silicone rubber, including its processing adaptability and molding performance. A detailed discussion follows the characterization techniques, including mechanical testing, electron microscopy, thermal analysis, and scattering methods, which are used to evaluate the microstructure, mechanical properties, and thermal stability of the printed materials. Finally, the review explores the application of neutron scattering techniques in studying 3D printed silicone rubber, highlighting how these methods deepen the understanding of the material's microstructure, particularly in terms of polymer chain configuration and molecular dynamics. By integrating the latest advancements, this review aims to serve as a valuable reference for design, optimization, and industrial implementation of 3D printed silicone rubber.

This review focuses on recent progress in optimizing the energy storage performance of dielectric ceramic and indicates the correlation between performance and the designed microstructure. Principles and key parameters of dielectric energy storage are described, and optimized strategies on microstructure with improving energy storage performance are briefly collected, named domain engineering, grain refining strategy, textured ceramic design, multi-phase engineering, core-shell structure design, and multilayer structural design. Conclusion with existing challenges and perspectives of microstructure control on optimizing energy storage performance dielectric ceramic are finally presented.

Failure of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) under subfreezing conditions limits their further development in aerospace and military applications, including severe capacity degradation, poor charge ability, and safety issue. Sluggish electrochemical reaction kinetics in the cathode-electrolyte interphases (CEI) would restrict the diffusion transfer of electric charge and Li⁺ ions, which is regarded as the main factor contributing to the low-temperature electrochemical failure issue. This review introduces and discusses the latest important interfacial CEI engineering on the layered oxide cathode in enhancing the low-temperature performance of LIBs based on the electrolyte modulation strategies. Firstly, the interfacial issues of layered oxide cathodes and the formation mechanism of CEI film under subzero temperatures are introduced. Secondly, recent progress about the interfacial engineering on inducing CEI construction under low temperature is summarized in terms of the components mainly involved in anions of Li salt, solvent molecule and additive. Thirdly, considering the unique composition and structure of CEI films, advanced interfacial characterization techniques and analysis are summarized. Finally, a perspective of electrolyte design matched with layered cathode materials in low-temperature LIBs is further presented, which may supply a new sight into designs and manufacture of LIBs and other devices for subzero-temperature applications.

New materials, crucial for economic and technological progress, are prioritized globally with strategies to accelerate their advancement through big data and AI. AI for Materials (AI4Mater) serves as an overall framework for integrating AI into Materials Science and Engineering, which is structured around three main elements: materials data infrastructure, AI4Mater techniques, and applications. This article reviews the development procedure and recent innovations in materials data infrastructure, machine learning in materials, autonomous experiment, intelligent computation, and intelligent manufacture. These efforts aim to foster open access to AI resources and enhance the collective advancement of materials science, ultimately accelerating breakthroughs and elevating the engineering application of new materials in a sustainable manner.

In aerospace, high strength and toughness titanium alloys (HSTTAs) formed by additive manufacturing (AM) are mostly utilized to create complex shaped structural components. It can fulfill the bespoke design specifications of components, enhance material consumption and production efficiency, and decrease costs and time. As the requirement for safety and stability in structural components rises, damage tolerance performance (DTP) has emerged as the design benchmark for titanium alloys in aviation. This review initially presents the historical evolution of HSTTAs and subsequently discusses related research on the HSTTAs formed by AM. This review covers recent research advancements on the DTP of HSTTAs formed by AM, detailing the deformation behavior, fracture toughness, and fatigue crack propagation characteristics of the alloy. The primary approaches for enhancing the DTP of HSTTAs formed by AM, including process parameter optimization and heat treatment, are examined. Finally, the existing problems on current research and prospective research directions are identified. Investigating the DTP of HSTTAs formed by AM can enhance the overall performance of materials and guarantee structural integrity, while also fostering innovation in AM and propelling technological advancement. And it provides certain reference significance for upgrading AM processes and post-treatment processes, optimizing properties, and developing new high damage tolerant titanium alloys.

With the continuous increase in operating speed of high-speed trains, enhanced safety and stability in braking systems are necessitated. Copper-based friction materials (CBFMs) are predominantly utilized in brake pads for high-speed trains exceeding 300 km/h. Substantial braking energy is dissipated by CBFMs through direct interaction with counterpart materials, and their pivotal role in maintaining the safety and reliability of high-speed braking systems is ensured. The components and intrinsic properties, the multiple variations at the interface, and the distinctive characteristics of brake conditions are regarded as the primary factors influencing the braking properties of CBFMs. Recent advancements in CBFMs and tribological properties are systematically explored in this review from three critical perspectives: components, interfaces, and tribo-layers. Firstly, the emerging trends in matrix, lubricant components, and abrasive components in CBFMs are detailed. Secondly, the correlation between interfacial and tribological properties at both micro and macro scales is investigated. Thirdly, the characteristics of tribo-layers at different scales and the associated wear mechanisms of CBFMs are examined. Lastly, the challenges CBFMs face and the constraints of multi-component synergistic design, evaluation methodologies, and novel wear mechanisms are highlighted.

The thermophysical properties and rapid solidification mechanism of Fe-19 wt%Si alloy were investigated by electrostatic levitation aboard China Space Station and terrestrial drop tube techniques. All the solidification events neither favour the retention of the metastable Fe₂Si phase nor induce the decomposition of the Fe₅Si₃ phase. The density was determined to be a linear decreasing relationship with temperature, in which the liquid density at eutectic temperature was determined to be 6.19 g cm^-3. The surface tension and viscosity were measured to be 1.44 N m^-1 and 29.8 mPa s at liquid state. Because space environment suppresses the gravity-driven liquid flow required for solidification feeding, the space shrinkage was significantly higher than the ground condition. The Fe₃Si and Fe₂Si phases only displayed a divorced eutectic growth mode in the ground-based experiments, while the coupled growth appears under the space condition due to the suppression of long-range solute transport. The crystal grain size of Fe₃Si phase in space condition was larger than that on the ground.