Metal–Support Interaction Induced Electron Localization in Rationally Designed Metal Sites Anchored MXene Enables Boosted Electromagnetic Wave Attenuation
Xiao Wang, G. S. Dong, Fei Pan, Cong Lin, Bin Yuan, Yang Yang, Wei Lü
Abstract
Abstract The electron localization is considered as a promising approach to optimize electromagnetic waves (EMW) dissipation. However, it is still difficult to realize well-controlled electron localization and elucidate the related EMW loss mechanisms for current researches. In this study, a novel two-dimensional MXene (Ti 3 C 2 T x ) nanosheet decorated with Ni nanoclusters (Ni-NC) system to construct an effective electron localization model based on electronic orbital structure is explored. Theoretical simulations and experimental results reveal that the metal–support interaction between Ni-NC and MXene disrupts symmetric electronic environments, leading to enhanced electron localization and dipole polarization. Additionally, Ni-NC generate a strong interfacial electric field, strengthening heterointerface interactions and promoting interfacial polarization. As a result, the optimized material achieves an exceptional reflection loss (RL min ) of − 54 dB and a broad effective absorption bandwidth of 6.8 GHz. This study offers critical insights into the in-depth relationship between electron localization and EMW dissipation, providing a pathway for electron localization engineering in functional materials such as semiconductors, spintronics, and catalysis.