Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Scalable computation of anisotropic vibrations for large macromolecular assemblies Normal mode analysis is a crucial step in structural biology, but is based on an expensive diagonalisation of the system’s Hessian. Here the authors present INCHING, a GPU-based approach to accelerate this task up to >250 times over current methods for macromolecular assemblies. Jordy Homing Lam, Aiichiro Nakano & Vsevolod Katritch Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Transparent integrated pyroelectric-photovoltaic structure for photo-thermo hybrid power generation The full potential of photoelectric devices can possibly be maximized through pyroelectricity for power generation beyond thermodynamic limit. Here, authors report photovoltaic heterostructure device with pyroelectric absorber, achieving 2.5 times more output power due to long-range electric field. Malkeshkumar Patel, Hyeong-Ho Park & Joondong Kim Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Flower-shaped 2D crystals grown in curved fluid vesicle membranes Thin crystals grown on rigid spherical templates of increasing curvature exhibit increased protrusions. Here, the authors demonstrate the opposite curvature effect on the morphology of molecularly thin crystals grown within elastic fluid membranes, like those of biological cells. Hao Wan, Geunwoong Jeon & Maria M. Santore Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Functionalized MXene ink enables environmentally stable printed electronics Here, authors demonstrate the electrohydrodynamic printing of alkylated 3,4-dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine functionalized MXene (AD-MXene) ink. The AD-MXene outperforms vacuum-deposited Au and Al electrodes, providing thin film transistors with good environmental stability due to its hydrophobicity. Tae Yun Ko, Heqing Ye & Insik In Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Correlation between two distant quasiparticles in separate superconducting islands mediated by a single spin The authors experimentally study a chain of superconducting islands (SI) and quantum dots (QD), where a Bogoliubov quasiparticle occupies each SI. They demonstrate correlations between the quasiparticles in each SI mediated by a single spin on the QD, known as an “over-screened" doublet state of the QD. Juan Carlos Estrada Saldaña, Alexandros Vekris & Jesper Nygård Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access A comprehensive synthetic library of poly-N-acetyl glucosamines enabled vaccine against lethal challenges of Staphylococcus aureus Poly-β-(1–6)-N-acetylglucosamine (PNAG) is an important vaccine target, but the impact of the number and position of free amine vs N-acetylation on its antigenicity is not well understood. Here, the authors report a divergent strategy to synthesize a comprehensive library of PNAG pentasaccharides, enabling the identification of enhanced epitopes for vaccines against Staphylococcus aureus including drug resistant strains. Zibin Tan, Weizhun Yang & Xuefei Huang Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Direct programming of confined surface phonon polariton resonators with the plasmonic phase-change material In3SbTe2 Tailored light-matter interaction can be achieved with surface phonon polaritons (SPhPs). Here, Conrads et al. employ the plasmonic phase-change material In3SbTe2 on the polar crystal SiC for direct programming of confined SPhP resonators and study their resonance modes via near-field microscopy. Lukas Conrads, Luis Schüler & Thomas Taubner Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Energy-efficient superparamagnetic Ising machine and its application to traveling salesman problems Ising machines are promising for solving NP-hard problems, but current implementations have power consumption and scalability challenges. Si et al. implement an Ising machine consisting of 80 superparamagnetic tunnel junctions with all-to-all connections and apply it to a large-scale travelling salesman problem. Jia Si, Shuhan Yang & Hyunsoo Yang Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access DenRAM: neuromorphic dendritic architecture with RRAM for efficient temporal processing with delays The authors present DenRAM, a hardware realization of spiking neural network with dendritic architecture. It utilizes memristive devices to implement both delay and weight parameters, enhancing low-power signal processing with reduced memory use. Simone D’Agostino, Filippo Moro & Melika Payvand Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Quantum critical phase of FeO spans conditions of Earth’s lower mantle Large-scale eDMFT computation reveals that FeO undergoes a gradual orbitally selective insulator-metal transition across the extreme conditions of Earth’s interior, with implications for compositions and conductivity of the core-mantle boundary region. Wai-Ga D. Ho, Peng Zhang & Vasilije V. Dobrosavljevic Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Visualized in-sensor computing The communication of colour information stands as one of the most immediate and widespread methods of interaction among biological entities. Xu et al. report an electrochromic neuromorphic transistor employing color updates to represent synaptic weight for real-time visualised in-sensor computing. Yao Ni, Jiaqi Liu & Wentao Xu Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access Flow interactions lead to self-organized flight formations disrupted by self-amplifying waves Schools, flocks and related forms of collective behavior and collective locomotion involve complicated fluid dynamical interactions. Here, using a “mock flock" of robotic flappers, authors report that the interaction between leaders and followers is similar to one-way springs, leading to lattice-like self-organization but also a new type of traveling-wave disturbance. Joel W. Newbolt, Nickolas Lewis & Leif Ristroph Article 24 April 2024 | Open Access F-actin architecture determines the conversion of chemical energy into mechanical work F-actin architecture modulates transmission and generation of stresses in cells, yet its impact on myosin ATP hydrolysis remains unknown. The authors perform experiments measuring myosin ATP hydrolysis rates, showing that F-actin architecture can control myosin energy consumption. Ryota Sakamoto & Michael P. Murrell Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Dynamic acoustic optimization of pulse tube refrigerators for rapid cooldown Pulse tube refrigerators are a critical enabling technology for many disciplines that require low temperatures, including quantum computing. Here, the authors show that dynamically optimizing the acoustic parameters of the refrigerator can improve conventional cooldown speeds up to 3.5 times. Ryan Snodgrass, Vincent Kotsubo & Joel Ullom Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access An isolable, chelating bis[cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene] stabilizes a strongly bent, dicoordinate Ni(0) complex Notwithstanding their success as strongly σ-donating and π-accepting ligands, to date no chelating bis[cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbenes] have been reported. Here the authors describe a chelating, C2-symmetric bis[cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene] ligand, as well as its pseudotetrahedral complexes with iron, cobalt, nickel, and zinc dihalides. Braulio M. Puerta Lombardi, Morgan R. Faas & Roland Roesler Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Highly defective ultra-small tetravalent MOF nanocrystals Crystalline materials’ properties are highly dependent on their size. Here authors report a general synthesis of ultrasmall (4–6 nm) and highly defective Zr/Hf-Metal Organic Frameworks nanoparticles that present enhanced peptide hydrolysis performance. Shan Dai, Charlotte Simms & Christian Serre Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Dualistic insulator states in 1T-TaS2 crystals While monolayer of 1T-TaS2 is considered to be a Mott insulator, the nature of the bulk insulating state is debated. Here the authors introduce a ladder-type structures with fractional misalignment of adjacent layers, showing that it becomes a Mott insulator due to decoupling between the layers. Yihao Wang, Zhihao Li & Liang Cao Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Atomic-scale observation of localized phonons at FeSe/SrTiO3 interface The authors characterize the phonon modes at the FeSe/SrTiO3 interface with atomically resolved electron energy loss spectroscopy and correlate them with accurate atomic structure in an electron microscope. They find several phonon modes highly localized at the interface, one of which engages in strong interactions with the electrons in FeSe. Ruochen Shi, Qize Li & Peng Gao Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Boosting thermoelectric performance of single-walled carbon nanotubes-based films through rational triple treatments Authors introduce triple treatments to advance flexible single-walled carbon nanotube films, achieving a power factor of 20.29 µW cm−1 K−2. High structural stability and flexibility enable the fabrication of a high-power-density flexible device. Yuan-Meng Liu, Xiao-Lei Shi & Zhi-Gang Chen Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Measuring statistics-induced entanglement entropy with a Hong–Ou–Mandel interferometer Measuring quantum entanglement remains a demanding task. The authors introduce two functions to quantify entanglement induced by fermionic or bosonic statistics, in transport experiments. Both functions, in theory and experiment, are remarkably resilient against the nonuniversal effects of interactions. Gu Zhang, Changki Hong & Yuval Gefen Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Room-temperature stabilizing strongly competing ferrielectric and antiferroelectric phases in PbZrO3 by strain-mediated phase separation There is a desire to know how the threefold ferrielectric coexists with the antiferroelectric phase. Here, the authors realize a threefold-modulated ferrielectric phase regulated by strain-mediated phase separation in PbZrO3 thin film. Ziyi Yu, Ningbo Fan & Fangfang Xu Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Exosome-coated oxygen nanobubble-laden hydrogel augments intracellular delivery of exosomes for enhanced wound healing Challenges including hypoxia, inflammation, and inadequate exosome intracellular delivery hinder wound healing. Here, the authors show that a multifunctional exosome-coated oxygen nanobubble-laden hydrogel enhances exosome delivery and mitigates hypoxia for enhanced wound healing. Xiaoxue Han, Chaimongkol Saengow & Joseph Irudayaraj Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Autonomous self-healing supramolecular polymer transistors for skin electronics Integrating self-healing capabilities into skin-like stretchable transistors presents a persistent challenge. Here, by using a supramolecular polymer matrix, the authors develop autonomous self-healing transistors and skin-like logic circuits. Ngoc Thanh Phuong Vo, Tae Uk Nam & Jin Young Oh Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access Pathway-divergent coupling of 1,3-enynes with acrylates through cascade cobalt catalysis The development of divergent reaction pathways controlled by different ligands is a critical goal. Here the authors describe a cobalt-catalyzed strategy for cascade coupling of 1,3-enynes with two molecules of acrylates through three reaction modes. Heng Wang, Xiaofeng Jie & Fanke Meng Article 23 April 2024 | Open Access In situ captured antibacterial action of membrane-incising peptide lamellae Inspired by the alternating chirality backbone pattern of some effective peptide antimicrobials, here authors design lysine-rich heterochiral peptides that show antimicrobial activity. Kamal el Battioui, Sohini Chakraborty & Tamás Beke-Somfai Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Dehydroxylative radical N-glycosylation of heterocycles with 1-hydroxycarbohydrates enabled by copper metallaphotoredox catalysis N-Glycosylated heterocycles play important roles in biological systems and drug development, but the synthesis heavily relies on ionic N-glycosylation. Herein, the authors report a dehydroxylative radical method for synthesizing N-glycosides by leveraging copper metallaphotoredox catalysis. Da-Peng Liu, Xiao-Sen Zhang & Xiang-Guo Hu Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Polarizability matters in enantio-selection Polarizability, a property that is closely related to softness in the classic theory of Hard and Soft Acids and Bases (HSAB), has been largely overlooked in connecting with enantio-selection in the past. Here, the authors show local polarizability-based electronic effects can rationalize a wide range of stereochemical outcomes in widely-known asymmetric catalytic reactions. Fumin Chen, Yu Chen & Xiangyou Xing Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access An organic proton cage that is ultra-resistant to hydroxide-promoted degradation Organic cations are typically unstable under low-humidity, alkaline conditions. Here, the authors report an organic cation featuring a proton protected within a cage that can withstand vapor-phase alkaline conditions. Chase L. Radford, Torben Saatkamp & Steven Holdcroft Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Neural étendue expander for ultra-wide-angle high-fidelity holographic display All holographic displays and imaging techniques are fundamentally limited by the étendue supported by existing spatial light modulators. Here, the authors report on using artificial intelligence (AI) to learn an étendue expanding element that effectively increases étendue by two orders of magnitude. Ethan Tseng, Grace Kuo & Felix Heide Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Highly efficient anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers via chromium-doped amorphous electrocatalysts Modulating the electronic structure of active metal sites is crucial to enhance the activity of anion-exchange membrane water electrolyzers. Here, the authors elaborate Cr-doped amorphous metal oxide catalysts with excellent activity and stability. Sicheng Li, Tong Liu & Tao Yao Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Catalytic role of in-situ formed C-N species for enhanced Li2CO3 decomposition Sluggish kinetics of the CO2 reactions lead to the accumulation of Li2CO3 residuals, which hinders the cycling stability of Li-CO2 batteries. Here, the authors reveal the catalytic role of in-situ formed C-N species in enhancing the reversibility of Li2CO3 and cycle life of Li-CO2 batteries. Fangli Zhang, Wenchao Zhang & Zaiping Guo Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Double cross-linked 3D layered PBI proton exchange membranes for stable fuel cell performance above 200 °C Phosphoric acid (PA) doped proton exchange membranes (PEMs) often degrade above 200 °C due to membrane creeping, PA dehydration, and condensation. Here, the authors introduce gel-state polybenzimidazole PEMs with double cross-linked 3D layered structures, enabling efficient and stable fuel cell operation above 200 °C. Liang Zhang, Mengjiao Liu & Lixin Xue Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access An ultra energy-efficient hardware platform for neuromorphic computing enabled by 2D-TMD tunnel-FETs The most successful commercial implementations of neuromorphic computing circuits are limited to digital-CMOS-circuit based approaches to date. Along this line, Pal et al. improve the energy efficiency by two orders of magnitude using two-dimensional layered material-based tunnel-field-effect transistors. Arnab Pal, Zichun Chai & Kaustav Banerjee Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Local CO2 reservoir layer promotes rapid and selective electrochemical CO2 reduction Converting CO2 to valuable chemicals is of high interest. Here the authors address the challenge of low CO2 solubility in water by incorporating a metal-organic framework layer to enhance CO2 pre-concentration and activation before its electroreduction by the underlying solid electrocatalyst. Subhabrata Mukhopadhyay, Muhammad Saad Naeem & Idan Hod Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Fabrication-induced even-odd discrepancy of magnetotransport in few-layer MnBi2Te4 MnBi2Te4 is an antiferromagnetic topological insulator. This combination of magnetic ordering and topological properties has resulted in intense interest, however, like many van der Waals materials, experimental results are hampered by fabrication difficulties. Here, Li, Wang, Lian et al. show that the fabrication process itself can result in mismatched thickness dependence of magneto-transport measurements. ‘ Yaoxin Li, Yongchao Wang & Chang Liu Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access A liquid metal-based module emulating the intelligent preying logic of flytrap The intelligent responses of Venus flytrap to various stimuli provide valuable insights into electronic design. Here, the authors report a liquid metal-based logic module with memory and counting properties to intelligently respond like the flytrap. Yuanyuan Yang & Yajing Shen Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Atomic-scale visualization of the interlayer Rydberg exciton complex in moiré heterostructures Recently, Rydberg excitons have been demonstrated in transition metal dichalcogenide moire superlattices. Here, using atomic-scale imaging, the authors observe Rydberg structure and moire periodicity of ground-state interlayer excitons in a monolayer YbCl3 on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite. Meng Zhao, Zhongjie Wang & Chunlei Gao Article 22 April 2024 | Open Access Stable skyrmion bundles at room temperature and zero magnetic field in a chiral magnet Manipulation of topological charge at room temperature is a key tenet of skyrmionics. Here, the authors demonstrate tunable topological charges in skyrmion bundles at room temperature and zero magnetic field. Yongsen Zhang, Jin Tang & Haifeng Du Article 20 April 2024 | Open Access Iterative SuFEx approach for sequence-regulated oligosulfates and its extension to periodic copolymers The synthesis of sequence-regulated oligosulfates has not yet been established due to the difficulties in precise reactivity control. Here, the authors report a multi-directional divergent iterative method to furnish oligosulfates based on a chain homologation approach, in which the fluorosulfate unit is regenerated. Min Pyeong Kim, Swatilekha Kayal & Sung You Hong Article 20 April 2024 | Open Access Inkjet-printed optical interference filters Optical interference filters are multilayer structures for controlling the propagation of electromagnetic waves. Jin et al. have developed a method of via inkjet printing to fabricate optical interference filters with commercially relevant quality with remarkable A4 paper size (29.7 × 21.0 cm²) in ambient conditions. Qihao Jin, Qiaoshuang Zhang & Uli Lemmer Article 20 April 2024 | Open Access Orphan high field superconductivity in non-superconducting uranium ditelluride In addition to its low-field superconducting state, UTe2 features a re-entrant superconducting state when high magnetic fields are applied at a particular range of angles. Here, the authors demonstrate that the high-field re-entrant superconducting state survives even when the low-field superconducting state is destroyed by disorder. Corey E. Frank, Sylvia K. Lewin & Nicholas P. Butch Article 20 April 2024 | Open Access Electronic inhomogeneity and phase fluctuation in one-unit-cell FeSe films The authors study monolayer FeSe via scanning tunneling microscopy and simultaneous micron-scale-probe-based transport. They observe distinct superconducting phases in domains and on boundaries between domains, with different superconducting gaps and pairing temperatures. Dapeng Zhao, Wenqiang Cui & Qi-Kun Xue Article 20 April 2024 | Open Access Electrostatic steering of thermal emission with active metasurface control of delocalized modes Dynamic angular tuning of thermal emission is a problem in the field of thermal metasurfaces. Here, the authors make a thermal emission device using electrostatic gates, opening an avenue for radiative heat management and mid-infrared communication. Joel Siegel, Shinho Kim & Victor Watson Brar Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access High-throughput quantum photonic devices emitting indistinguishable photons in the telecom C-band An efficient way of realising a large number of telecom single-photon emitters for quantum communication is still missing. Here, the authors use a wide-field imaging technique for fast localization of single InAs/InP quantum dots, which are then integrated into circular Bragg grating cavities featuring high single-photon purity and indistinguishability. Paweł Holewa, Daniel A. Vajner & Elizaveta Semenova Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access Palladium-catalyzed asymmetric carbene coupling en route to inherently chiral heptagon-containing polyarenes Developing facile and direct synthesis routes for enantioselective construction of cyclic π-conjugated molecules is crucial but the chirality orginiating from the distorted structure around heptagon-containing polyarenes is largely overlooked. Herein the authors present a highly enantioselective synthesis for fabrication of all carbon heptagon-containing polyarenes via palladium-catalyzed carbene-based cross–coupling of benzyl bromides and N-arylsulfonylhydrazones. Huan Zhang, Chuan-Jun Lu & Ren-Rong Liu Perspective 18 April 2024 | Open Access Materials design for hypersonics Hypersonic vehicles experience extreme temperatures, high heat fluxes, and aggressive oxidizing environments. Here, the authors highlight key materials design principles for critical vehicle areas and strategies for advancing laboratory-scale materials to flight-ready components. Adam B. Peters, Dajie Zhang & Suhas Eswarappa Prameela Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access Exciton polariton condensation from bound states in the continuum at room temperature Bound states in continuum have attracted attention in various platforms, and recently condensation of bound states in continuum polariton modes was demonstrated at low temperatures. Here the authors report the observation of such a state in a periodic air-hole perovskite-based photonic crystal at room temperature. Xianxin Wu, Shuai Zhang & Xinfeng Liu Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access Redefined ion association constants have consequences for calcium phosphate nucleation and biomineralization While clusters in calcium orthophosphate nucleation have long been known, their speciation and mechanistic pathways to hydroxyapatite remain debated. Here the authors report a revision of ion association in the calcium phosphate system and explore the consequences thereof on the early stages of phase separation. David P. McDonogh, Julian D. Gale & Denis Gebauer Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access Understanding the charge transfer effects of single atoms for boosting the performance of Na-S batteries Efficient charge transfer in sulfur electrodes is a crucial challenge for sodium-sulfur batteries. Here, the authors developed a machine-learning-assisted approach to quickly identify effective single-atom catalysts that enhance selectivity for short-chain sodium polysulfides, leading to improved battery performance. Yao-Jie Lei, Xinxin Lu & Guoxiu Wang Article 18 April 2024 | Open Access A CMOS-compatible oscillation-based VO2 Ising machine solver Oscillating neural networks promise ultralow power consumption and rapid computation for tackling complex optimization problems. Here, the authors demonstrate VO2 oscillators to solve NP-complete problems with projected power consumption of 13 µW/oscillator. Olivier Maher, Manuel Jiménez & Siegfried Karg