Biomimetic coral reef structures drive breakthroughs in microwave absorption materials—trimetal LDH and MXene self-assembled composite materials achieve efficient electromagnetic wave attenuation
image: The porous network formed by the vertical growth of flower-like LDH on the surface of MXene ingeniously mimics the natural structure of coral reefs. When this composite material is used as a stealth coating for aircraft, it can efficiently dissipate radar waves with a thickness of only 1.45mm, thereby achieving a stealth effect.
Credit: Nano Research, Tsinghua University Press
Electromagnetic wave radiation is becoming an "invisible nuisance" in modern society - it not only interferes with the normal operation of electronic devices such as mobile phones and satellites, but long-term exposure may also pose a threat to human health. Meanwhile, the demand for "stealth technology" in the military field is becoming increasingly urgent, requiring materials that can efficiently absorb radar waves and be thinner and lighter themselves. However, traditional microwave absorbing materials are either thick and heavy or have a narrow absorption bandwidth, making it difficult to meet the requirements of advanced electronic equipment and national defense technology.
Recently, a research team composed of institutions such as Beijing Jiaotong University and Beihang University has made significant progress in this field. Inspired by the porous structure of coral reefs, they designed a composite material composed of trimetallic layered dihydroxides (ZnNiCo-LDH) and Ti₃C₂T youdaoplaceholder0 MXene self-assembled, ingeniously solving the performance bottleneck of traditional materials. The relevant research results have provided a new paradigm for the design of high-performance microwave absorbing materials.
The team published their review in Nano Research on September 25, 2025
Core innovation of the composite material lies in the integration of "structural bionics" and "interface engineering". The team imitated the multi-level porous structure of coral reefs, allowing flower-like ZnNiCo-LDH to grow vertically on the surface of MXene, forming a three-dimensional network similar to "coral polyps". This structure not only extends the propagation path of electromagnetic waves within the material, enhancing energy attenuation through multiple reflections, but also forms a high-density "Mot-Schottky junction" at the interface between the two materials through electrostatic self-assembly, constructing a continuous built-in electric field network.
The built-in electric field is like countless miniature "charge separators", which can accelerate electron migration, enhance interface polarization, and enable electromagnetic energy to be more efficiently converted into thermal energy for dissipation. Professor Luting Yan from Beijing Jiaotong University, one of the corresponding authors of the study, explained, "Meanwhile, the high electrical conductivity of MXene and the semiconductor characteristics of LDH work synergistically, ensuring both energy loss capacity and optimizing impedance matching - which is the key for the material to achieve super-strong absorption at an ultra-thin thickness."
Experimental data shows that this bionic composite material, with a thickness of only 1.35 millimeters, has an electromagnetic reflection loss as low as -49.6 dB (meaning 99.998% of electromagnetic energy is absorbed), and an effective absorption bandwidth of 3.4 GHz, fully covering the radar frequencies in the Ku band (12-18 GHz). More importantly, radar cross-section simulation confirmed that it can reduce the intensity of the target reflection signal by -39.57 dB·m², far exceeding the performance of traditional materials.
"Our design breaks away from the limitation of the 'single loss mechanism'," added Professor Guangsheng Wang from Beihang University. "By adjusting the ratio of LDH to MXene, the absorption frequency band of the material can also be flexibly adjusted to meet the needs of different scenarios."
Significance of the research goes beyond performance breakthroughs, offering a new "bionic + interface engineering" path for material design. In the future, this material is expected to be applied in fields such as electromagnetic shielding for 5G communication equipment, anti-interference protection for precision electronic instruments, and radar wave absorption coatings for advanced stealth fighter jets and ships.
Next steps, the team stated, will focus on optimizing the material’s environmental stability and large-scale preparation processes, facilitating its transition from laboratory to practical application. "We hope this bionic material can become a 'cleaner' for electromagnetic pollution and an 'invisible shield' for national defense security," Professor Benliang Liang from Beijing Jiaotong University concluded.
Other contributors include Yuntong Meng, Jiahui Wang, Gegen Sarula, and Luting Yan from the School of Physical Science and Engineering at Beijing Jiaotong University in Beijing, China; Bo Cai, Lu Zhou, Yu Zhang, Guangsheng Wang from the Key Laboratory of Bio-Inspired Smart Interfacial Science and Technology of Ministry of Education School of Chemistry at Beihang University in Beijing, China; Yongtao Zhou from the PipeChina Beijing Pipeline Company in Beijing, China; Min Lu from the School of Chemical Engineering at Northeast Electric Power University in Jilin , China
This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Nos. 2025YJS170). This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 52172081).
About Nano Research
Nano Research is a peer-reviewed, open access, international and interdisciplinary research journal, sponsored by Tsinghua University and the Chinese Chemical Society, published by Tsinghua University Press on the platform SciOpen. It publishes original high-quality research and significant review articles on all aspects of nanoscience and nanotechnology, ranging from basic aspects of the science of nanoscale materials to practical applications of such materials. After 18 years of development, it has become one of the most influential academic journals in the nano field. Nano Research has published more than 1,000 papers every year from 2022, with its cumulative count surpassing 7,000 articles. In 2024 InCites Journal Citation Reports, its 2024 IF is 9.0 (8.7, 5 years), and it continues to be the Q1 area among the four subject classifications. Nano Research Award, established by Nano Research together with TUP and Springer Nature in 2013, and Nano Research Young Innovators (NR45) Awards, established by Nano Research in 2018, have become international academic awards with global influence.