Solar cells are expected to become one of the dominant electricity generation technologies in the coming decades. Developing high-performance absorbers made from thin materials is a promising pathway to improve efficiency and reduce cost, accelerating the widespread adoption of these photovoltaic cells. In the present work, we have systematically investigated the 2D MoSi₂N₄/Arsenene van der Waals (vdW) heterostructure, which exhibits a type-II band alignment with an indirect band gap semiconductor (1.58 eV), that can effectively separate the photogenerated electron–hole (e⁻–h⁺) pairs. Compared to the isolated MoSi₂N₄ and Arsenene monolayers, the optical absorption strength can be significantly enhanced in MoSi₂N₄/Arsenene vdW heterostructure (in the order of ∼10⁵ cm⁻¹ in the visible region). The calculated optical absorption gaps are 2.12 eV (Arsenene) and 1.76 eV (MoSi₂N₄), with excitonic binding energies of 0.05 eV for arsenene and 0.48 eV for MoSi₂N₄, indicating that both materials can effectively form excitons and separate charges. Moreover, we found a high spectroscopic limited maximum efficiency of 27.27% for the MoSi₂N₄/Arsenene vdW heterostructure, which is relatively higher compared to previously reported 2D heterostructures. Ab-initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations at 300 K, 600 K, and 900 K were conducted to evaluate the thermal stability of the MoSi₂N₄/Arsenene heterostructure. Simulations in the presence of water and NO₂ at 300 K were also performed to assess its resilience to humidity and pollutants. The results suggest strong stability under harsh environmental conditions. Our findings demonstrate that the 2D MoSi₂N₄/Arsenene vdW heterostructure is an excellent candidate for both photovoltaic device applications and optoelectronic nanodevices.

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries, renowned for their potential high energy density, have attracted attention due to their use of earth-abundant elements. However, a significant challenge lies in developing suitable materials for both lithium-based anodes, which are less prone to lithium dendrite formation, and sulfur-based cathodes. This obstacle has hindered their widespread commercial viability. In this study, we present a novel sulfur host material in the form of a two-dimensional semiconductor boron nitride framework, specifically the 2D orthorhombic diboron dinitride (o-B2N₂). The inherent conductivity of o-B2N₂ mitigates the insulating nature often observed in sulfur-based electrodes. Notably, the o-B2N₂ surface demonstrates a high binding affinity for long-chain Li-polysulfides, leading to a significant reduction in their dissolution into the DME/DOL electrolytes. Furthermore, the preferential deposition of Li2S on the o-B2N₂ surface expedites the kinetics of the lithium polysulfide redox reactions. Additionally, our investigations have revealed a catalytic mechanism on the o-B2N₂ surface, significantly reducing the free energy barriers for various sulfur reduction reactions. Consequently, the integration of o-B2N₂ as a host cathode material for Li–S batteries holds great promise in suppressing the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides and ultimately enhancing the overall battery performance. This represents a practical advancement for the application of Li–S batteries.

Promising flexible electrochemical energy storage systems (EESSs) are currently drawing considerable attention for their tremendous prospective end-use in portable self-powered electronic devices, including roll-up displays, and “smart” garments outfitted with piezoelectric patches to harvest energy from body movement. However, the lack of suitable battery electrodes that provides a specific electrochemical performance has made further development of these technologies challenging. Two-dimensional (2D) lightweight and flexible materials with outstanding physical and chemical properties, including mechanical strengths, hydrophilic surfaces, high surface metal diffusivity, and good conductivity, have been identified as a potential prospect for battery electrodes. In this study, taking a new 2D boron nitride allotrope, namely 2D orthorhombic diboron dinitride monolayer (o-B₂N₂) as representatives, we systematically explored several influencing factors, including electronic, mechanical, and their electrochemical properties (e.g., binding strength, ionic mobility, equilibrium voltage, and theoretical capacity). Considering potential charge-transfer polarization, we employed a charged electrode model to simulate ionic mobility and found ionic mobility has a unique dependence on the surface atomic configuration influenced by bond length, valence electron number, electrical conductivity, excellent ionic mobility, low equilibrium voltage with excellent stability, good flexibility, and extremely superior theoretical capacity, up to 8.7 times higher than that of widely commercialized graphite (3239.74 mAh g⁻¹ Vs 372 mAh g⁻¹) in case of Li-ion batteries and 2159.83 mAh g⁻¹ in case of Na-ion batteries, indicating that the new predicted 2D o-B₂N₂ monolayer possess the capability to be ideal flexible anode materials for Lithium and Sodium-ion battery. Our finding provides valuable insights for experimental explorations of flexible anode candidates based on 2D o-B₂N₂ monolayer.

Motivated by the successful synthesis of 2D C₂F diamanes [Bakharev, P.V. et al., Nat. Nanotechnol. 15, 59–66 (2020)], we have systematically investigated the structural stability, in-plane mechanical, optoelectronic, photocatalytic, piezoelectric, and thermoelectric properties of non-Janus and Janus diamanes monolayers named as C₂H, C₂F, C₂Cl, C₄HF, C₄HCl and C₄FCl. The structural stability is confirmed by cohesive energy, phonon dispersion spectra, and mechanical properties. The electronic properties has been calculated by HSE06 functional and the band gap are found to be 3.85, 5.64, 2.32, 4.16, 0.73 and 1.91 eV for C₂H, C₂F, C₂Cl, C₄HF, C₄HCl and C₄FCl, respectively. The hydrogen-containing non-Janus and Janus diamanes monolayers have a higher negative Poisson's ratio (NPR) and therefore are good auxetic materials. From the Poisson's ratio and Young's modulus of each configuration of non-Janus and Janus diamanes monolayer, anisotropic behavior was displayed. From the optical properties calculations, the refractive index values are around 1.5, which means that it will be a transparent monolayered materials. Also, C₂Cl, C₄HCl and C₄FCl monolayers displayed high absorption spectra with an order of 10⁵ cm⁻¹ in the visible region, which shows great applications in optoelectronic devices. Additionally, the valence and conduction band-edge positions of 2D Janus and non-Janus diamanes of C₂H, C₂F, and C₂Cl and C₄HF monolayers have to straddle the redox potentials of water. It means that the photogenerated electrons and holes are sufficient to drive the overall water splitting. Whereas non-Janus diamanes C₄HCl, and C₄FCl monolayers displayed only water oxidation. The investigated in-plane piezoelectric coefficient has larger in non-Janus diamanes C₄HF, C₄HCl, and C₄FCl monolayers. Therefore, it is very useful in the field of piezoelectric applications. From the thermoelectric properties, the non-Janus and Janus diamanes monolayers have great thermoelectric efficiency and were found to be 10.52 and 10.63% for C₂H and C₂F, respectively. Our results demonstrate the new class of 2D carbon-based monolayers has good auxetic materials as well as a wide range of applications in optoelectronics, piezoelectric, and thermoelectric fields.

Through density functional theory (DFT)-based computations, a systematic exploration of the newly predicted 2D phosphorene allotrope, namely holey-phosphorene (HP), is carried out. It is revealed that HP shows a semiconducting nature with an indirect bandgap of 0.83 eV upon Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) functional. Then, to survey the optical features, a (G₀W₀)-based approach is employed to solve the Bethe–Salpeter equation to derive the intra-layer excitonic effects. It is derived via the absorption spectrum, that HP presents an excitonic binding strength of 1.47/1.96 eV along the x/y-direction with the first peak of the absorption at 0.92/0.43 eV for the x/y-direction. The thermoelectric properties are also explored in detail and reveal a very high thermal power value along with an enhanced figure of merit (ZT) of about 3.6. The 2D HP monolayer for thermoelectric performance has high thermoelectric conversion efficiency (TCE) and is estimated to be about 22%. All these outstanding findings may be attributed to the quantum confinement effect of the porous geometry of the 2D HP nanosheet, thereby confirming its relevance as a prospect for high-performance optoelectronic and thermoelectric engineering systems.

To achieve the high-rate efficiency in a electrochemical energy storage technologies, it is vital for the battery anode to be electronically as well as ionically conductive. Such a requirement has boosted the survey of three-dimensional (3D) porous networks made up of light-weight non-metallic elements, like carbon, boron, and nitride. A wide range of 3D porous materials composed of carbon and/or boron for Li/Na-ion batteries have been recently reported, whereas analogous efforts for lightest 3D porous boron nitride are yet to be addressed. In this work, we explore the 3D porous boron nitride network namely sp³-linked zigzag BN nanoribbons (BNNRs) with a width of 1 (lz1-BN) by assembling the 2D zigzag BNNRs and its first ever application as battery anodes for Li and Na ion batteries. Upon a consistent DFT and AIMD computations, It is revealed that the 3D porous lz1-BN material is chemically and thermally stable and yields a high specific capacity of about 539.94 mAh/g with respect to the commercialized graphite (372 mAh/g for LIBs) and recently reported Janus-graphite anode (≈332 mAh/g for SIBs), fast (Li⁺,Na⁺)-ionic diffusion, low potential voltage, and slight volume-expansion. Such puzzling electrochemical characteristics, along with the light-weight and high abundance of B and N elements, strongly support the possibility of 3D porous BN as a desirable candidate for Li and Na-ion battery anodes.

Halide-based double perovskites have recently been promoted as high-performing semiconductors for photovoltaic and thermoelectricity applications owing to their outstanding efficiency, non-toxicity and ecological stability. In the framework of this research, we have systematically investigated the structural, mechanical, electronic, optical, and thermoelectric properties of Rb₂InSb(Cl,Br)₆ double halide perovskites. Based on Born stability and tolerance factor criteria, we have found that Rb₂InSb(Cl,Br)₆ are mechanically and structurally stable. Furthermore, we have performed a comprehensive evaluation of the electronic, optoelectronic, and thermoelectric characteristics. From the electronic band structure results, Rb₂InSbCl₆ and Rb₂InSbBr₆ exhibit direct semiconducting band gaps of 1.41 ​eV and 0.53 ​eV, respectively. The optical parameters of Rb₂InSb(Cl,Br)₆ reveal that our active structures have a higher dielectric constant, with maximum absorption in the visible range reaching over 5.68 ​× ​10⁵ ​cm⁻¹ and high optical conductivity (2.19 fs⁻¹ for Rb₂InSbCl₆ and 2.14 fs⁻¹ for Rb₂InSbCl₆). Moreover, the maximum limited spectroscopic efficiency reaches an impressive value of approximately 28.0% for Rb₂InSbBr₆ and 33.7% for Rb₂InSbCl₆. The thermoelectric properties were accurately calculated using the BoltzTraP simulation package. The obtained results reveal a significant electrical conductivity, a strong Seebeck coefficient (S ​≈ ​2756 μVK⁻¹ ​at 300 ​K), and an average figure of merit close to one for both structures (ZT ​≈ ​1). Our findings suggest the versatility of these materials and could be used for a wide range of applications, including commercial solar cells and thermoelectricity.

We explore the possibility and potential benefit of rolling a Si2BN sheet into single-walled nanotubes (NTs). Using density functional theory (DFT), we consider both structural stability and the impact on the nature of chemical bonding and conduction. The structure is similar to carbon NTs and hexagonal boron-nitride (hBN) NTs and we consider both armchair and zigzag Si2BN configurations with varying diameters. The stability of these Si2BN NTs is confirmed by first-principles molecular dynamics calculations, by exothermal formation, an absence of imaginary modes in the phonon spectra. Also, we find the nature of conduction varies from semiconducting over semimetallic to metallic, reflecting differences in armchair/zigzag-type structures, curvature effects, and the effect of quantum confinement. We present a detailed characterization of how these properties lead to differences in both the bonding nature and electronic structures.

Hydrogen production via solar light-driven water dissociation has been regarded as an artificial and effective process to overcome the environmental problem as well as solving the current energy crisis. In this regard, numerous works have mainly been devoted to developing the appropriate photocatalyst which satisfies the conditions for water splitting and understanding the photocatalysis process. In this study, we propose for the first time the potential application of the two-dimensional Janus aluminum oxysulfide Al₂OS as an efficient photocatalyst material for hydrogen-production H₂ through the first-principles calculations. Janus Al₂OS monolayer has been designed from the parental binary aluminum sulfide AlS by substituting one sub-layer of sulfide atoms (S) to oxygen atoms (O). The electronic properties of the pristine AlS and the derived Janus Al₂OS were computed using GGA-PBE and HSE06 functionals. According to the band structure, AlS monolayer shows a semiconductor behavior with an indirect bandgap of 2.14 eV whereas, the Janus Al₂OS exhibits a direct bandgap of 1.579 eV. Motivated by the desirable bandgap of the Janus Al₂OS, the absorption-coefficient of Janus Al₂OS shows strong visible light harvesting compared to the parental AlS. Furthermore, the photocatalytic performance of Al₂OS has been investigated. Our calculations demonstrate that the band edge position of Al₂OS is suitable for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). More importantly, based on the reaction coordinate, it was found that the Gibbs free-energy ΔG_H^∗ of Al₂OS is 0.97 eV which is smaller than of the two-dimensional Janus Ga₂XY (X, Y = S, Se, Te with X ≠ Y) reported recently. Moreover, this value decreases from 0.97 eV to 0.69 eV under 0.5 V/Å of an external electrical field. Our results indicate that Janus Al₂OS fulfills the fundamental requirements for efficient photo-catalyst under visible light and provides new guidance for hydrogen-production via water splitting.

The massive consumption of traditional fossil fuel like oil, coal and natural gas has led to serious environmental issues, which drove the search for cleaner renewable energy sources. One such option is photocatalytic water splitting that has attracted much attention as a viable process for the large scale production of hydrogen as a renewable fuel. Within this perspective, we methodically studied the structural, optoelectronic, and photocatalytic properties of two-dimensional aluminum monochalcogenide monolayers with the chemical formula AlX (X = O, S, Se, and Te) based on the framework of Density Functional Theory (DFT). All considered structures are full relaxed and their thermodynamic stabilities are confirmed by computing the phonon spectrum and Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics (AIMD) simulations. The electronic characteristics are also performed on the basis of both exchange correlation functional GGA-PBE and HSE06 in order to obtain the accurate electronic band gap. According to our calculations, all the four monolayers posses indirect band gaps ranging between 1.937 and 2.46 eV. Furthermore, based on desirable electronic band gaps, the optical performance features were further explored including complex refractive index, absorption coefficient and energy loss function by means of the complex dielectric function. It is found that all the four materials present a high absorption coefficient in the visible and Ultra-Violet regions. Finally, the band edge positions of our monolayers straddle the reduction potential of H₂ and the oxidation potential H₂O. Also, it was found that the Gibbs free energy of 2D AlO monolayer is 0.02 eV at certain applied external electric field and very close to ideal catalysts which suggest that the AlO monolayer is better candidate for hydrogen production. Our findings demonstrate that AlX monolayers are suitable materials for optoelectronics and hydrogen production via photocatalytic water splitting.

In recent years, two-dimensional MXenes have been emerged as potential electrode materials for rechargeable batteries due to their unique properties such as exceptional safety, significant interlayer spacing, environmental flexibility, large surface area, high electrical conductivity, and excellent thermal stability. This review examined all of the recent advances in the field of MXenes and their composites (hybrid structures), which are found to be useful for the electrochemical applications of advanced rechargeable batteries. The main focus of this review is on metal-ion batteries and lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries. It is intended to show that the combination of recent improvements in the synthesis and characterization, greater control of the interlayer distance, and new MXene composites, together serve as an emerging and potential way for energy storage applications.

Modeling the 2D Van der Waals (vdW) heterostructure photocatalysts is an effective way to take advantage of solar energy and suppressing the fast recombination rate of photo-generated charge carriers. In the present work, we have systematically investigated the electronic, optical and photocatalytic properties of the GaS/BTe vdW heterostructure under an applied external electric field using first-principles calculations. Our results reveal that the GaS/BTe vdW heterostructure has an indirect band gap of 1.06/1.59 eV with PBE/HSE06 functional without electric field. The results also imply that electrons are likely to transfer from GaS to BTe monolayer due to the deeper potential of BTe monolayer. The GaS/BTe vdW system forms a type-II band alignment and established a large electric field at the interface, controlling to effective separation of the electron–hole pairs. Also, the transverse external electric considerably changes the band gap and transform from type-II to type-I and type-III band alignments. The GaS/BTe vdW heterostructure, also enhanced the optical absorption as compared to pristine GaS and BTe monolayer. Furthermore, the (−)ve electric field significantly increases the optical absorption spectrum in infrared (IR) to visible region, while the (+)ve electric field enhances the optical absorption coefficients in visible to ultraviolet (UV) region. The external transverse electric field enhances the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity on the 2D vdW heterostructure. These obtained results predict that the 2D GaS/BTe vdW heterostructures carry potential applications to enhancing the photocatalytic performance under visible light irradiation.

Nowadays, secondary batteries based on sodium (Na), potassium (K), and magnesium (Mg) stimulate curiosity as eventually high-availability, nontoxic, and eco-friendly alternatives of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Against this background, a spate of studies has been carried out over the past few years on anode materials suitable for post-lithium-ion battery (PLIBs), in particular sodium-, potassium- and magnesium-ion batteries. Here, we have consistently studied the efficiency of a 2D α-phase arsenic phosphorus (α-AsP) as anodes through density functional theory (DFT) basin-hopping Monte Carlo algorithm (BHMC) and ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) calculations. Our findings show that α-AsP is an optimal anode material with very high stabilities, high binding strength, intrinsic metallic characteristic after (Na/K/Mg) adsorption, theoretical specific capacity, and ultralow ion diffusion barriers. The ultralow energy barriers are found to be 0.066 eV (Na), 0.043 eV (K), and 0.058 eV (Mg), inferior to that of the widely investigated MXene materials. During the charging process, a wide (Na+/K+/Mg2+) concentration storage from which a high specific capacity of 759.24/506.16/253.08 mAh/g for Na/K/Mg ions was achieved with average operating voltages of 0.84, 0.93, and 0.52 V, respectively. The above results provide valuable insights for the experimental setup of outstanding anode material for post-Li-ion battery.

The emergence of compact lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries with improved performances is becoming one of the most desirable aspects of future energy technologies. Beyond Li-ion batteries, Li-S is of great relevance to follow as it adapts to the specificity of each application. It is among the most suitable elements for high-performance energy storage systems, given its high theoretical capacity (1674 mA h g-1) and energy density (2600 W h kg-1) relative to Li-ion batteries (300 W h kg-1). Nevertheless, the high-cell polarization and the shuttle effect constitute an enormous challenge toward the concrete applications of Li-S batteries. In the framework of this work, density functional theory calculations have been carried out to analyze the potential of h-BAs nanosheets as a promising host material for Li-S batteries. Binding and electronic characteristics of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) adsorbed on h-BAs surface have been explored. Reported findings highlight the potential of the h-BAs monolayer as a moderate host material, given that the binding energies of different LiPSs vary from 0.47 to 3.55 eV. More detailed analysis of the complex binding mechanisms is carried out by investigating the components of van der Waals physical/chemical interactions. The defected surface of the h-BAs monolayer has optimum binding energies with LiPSs for Li-S batteries. All these findings provide valuable insights into the binding and electronic characteristics of the h-BAs monolayer as a moderate host material for Li-S batteries.

The present work systematically investigates the structural, electronic, and optical properties of a MoS₂/Si₂BN heterostructure based on first-principles calculations. Firstly, the charge transport and optoelectronic properties of MoS₂and Si₂BN heterostructures are computed in detail. We observed that the positions of the valence and conduction band edges of MoS₂and Si₂BN change with the Fermi level and form a Schottky contact heterostructure with superior optical absorption spectra. Furthermore, the charge density difference profile and Bader charge analysis indicated that the internal electric field would facilitate the separation of electron-hole (e⁻/h⁺) pairs at the MoS₂/Si₂BN interface and restrain the carrier recombination. This work provides an insightful understanding about the physical mechanism for the better photocatalytic performance of this new material system and offers adequate instructions for fabricating superior Si₂BN-based heterostructure photocatalysts.

The rational design of anode materials plays a significant factor in harnessing energy storage. With an in-depth insight into the relationships and mechanisms that underlie the charge and discharge process of two-dimensional (2D) anode materials. The efficiency of rechargeable batteries has significantly been improved through the implementation of defect chemistry on anode materials. This mini review highlights the recent progress achieved in defect chemistry on 2D materials for advanced rechargeable battery electrodes, including vacancies, chemical functionalization, grain boundary, Stone Wales defects, holes and cracks, folding and wrinkling, layered von der Waals (vdW) heterostructure in 2D materials. The defect chemistry on 2D materials provides numerous features such as a more active adsorption sites, great adsorption energy, better ions-diffusion and therefore higher ion storage, which enhances the efficiency of the battery electrode.