Hierarchical Ti<sub>3</sub>C<sub>2</sub>T<sub><i>x</i></sub> MXene/Ni Chain/ZnO Array Hybrid Nanostructures on Cotton Fabric for Durable Self-Cleaning and Enhanced Microwave Absorption
Shijun Wang, Diansen Li, Yue Zhou, Lei Jiang
Abstract
The increasing demand for wearable electronics and the intensification of electromagnetic pollution have boosted the exploration of high-performance flexible microwave absorption (MA) materials. Herein, the hierarchical Ti3C2Tx MXene/Ni chain/ZnO array hybrid nanostructures are rationally constructed on cotton fabric for acquiring enhanced MA performance and durable self-cleaning ability. Based on the high dielectric loss capacity of MXenes and ZnO arrays, by controlling dip-coating numbers of Ni chains, the magnetic loss can be manipulated to modulate the impedance matching, reflection loss (RL), and effective absorption bandwidth (EAB, the bandwidth of RL < −10 dB). The minimum RL value of the designed fabric can reach −35.1 dB at 8.3 GHz with a thickness of 2.8 mm, and its EAB can cover the whole X-band with only a 2.2 mm thickness. In addition, the designed fabric also exhibits superior liquid repellency and durable self-cleaning ability due to the combination of the hybrid nanostructures and a superhydrophobic coating. This work provides an insight for rational design of textile-based MA materials, showing potential applications in flexible and wearable functional electronics.