Electroless Nickel–Phosphorus (Ni-P) coating is recognized mostly for its outstanding corrosion and wear-resistant behavior. The intrinsic corrosion and wear-resistant properties of Ni-P-based coating could be further upgraded by incorporating appropriate second-phase additive particles into the coating matrix. However, such properties of the Ni-P-based coating greatly rely on the surface and microstructural evolution arising with the co-deposition of the additive particles. In this study, submicron Si₃N₄ (average size ~200 nm) and nano Si₃N₄ (average size ~20 nm) particles were incorporated while depositing a Ni-P alloy in a low-carbon steel substrate to develop the Ni-P-Si₃N₄ composites through the electroless coating method. The 20 nm Si₃N₄-incorporated composite coating constituted fewer defects such as cavities and micropores on the surface, but such defects significantly appeared on the surface of the composite after the incorporation of 200 nm Si₃N₄ nanoparticles. Subsequently, the composite Ni-P-Si₃N₄, developed with the co-deposition of 20 nm nanoparticles, is enriched with enhanced anticorrosion characteristics compared with the composite developed with 200 nm nanoparticles. The enhancement of anticorrosion behavior was attributed mainly to the Si₃N₄ nanoparticles that covered the substantial volume of the coating and led to inhibit the formation of corrosion active sites such as defects and metallic Ni phase.

Enhancement in the efficiency of a TiO₂ dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) has been demonstrated by introducing ferromagnetic perovskite BiFeO₃ and controlling the magnetic field, which induces two-dimensional material-like properties in the bulk of the TiO₂-BiFeO₃ DSSC (a 3-dimensional material). The effect of the concentration of BiFeO₃ as well as the magnetization direction on the performance of the TiO₂-BiFeO₃ DSSC has been investigated. After magnetization, it was confirmed that the current density, efficiency, and open circuit voltage of the TiO₂-BiFeO₃ DSSC were increased. The observed phenomena have been explained in terms of the Hall effect which is responsible for the reduction of the degree of freedom of the electron movement resulting in the two-dimensional material-like properties in the bulk of the TiO₂-BiFeO₃ DSSC.