As the search continues for novel, cheaper, more sustainable, and environmentally friendly thermoelectric materials in order to expand the range of applications of thermoelectric devices, the tetrahedrite mineral (Cu₁₂Sb₄S₁₃) stands out as a potential candidate due to its high abundance, low toxicity, and good thermoelectric performance. Unfortunately, as most current thermoelectric materials achieve zTs above 1.0, ternary tetrahedrite is not a suitable alternative. Still, improvement of its thermoelectric performance has been achieved to zTs ≈ 1 via isovalent doping and composition tuning, but most studies were limited to a single doping element. This project explores the effects of simultaneous doping with nickel and selenium in the thermoelectric properties of tetrahedrite. Simulated properties for different stoichiometric contents of these dopants, as well as the measured thermoelectric properties of the correspondent materials, are reported. One of the samples, Cu_11.5Ni_0.5Sb₄S_12.5Se_0.5, stands out with a high power factor = 1279.99 µW/m·K² at 300 K. After estimating the thermal conductivity, a zT = 0.325 at 300 K was obtained for this composition, which is the highest for tetrahedrites for this temperature. However, analysis of the weighted mobility shows the presence of detrimental factors, such as grain boundaries, disorder, or ionized impurity scattering, pointing to the possibility of further improvements.

Evidence for a cluster spin-glass phase (T_g = 15.3 K) in the skyrmion-hosting GaMo₄S₈ compound.

Co(ii)–N₄complex displays slow magnetisation at zero static field, exhibiting a high spin-reversal energy barrierU_eff= 85 cm⁻¹.

Cellulose, the most abundant biopolymer on Earth, has rapidly gained attention as a key component in the development of smart materials capable of dynamic and adaptive behavior. This review highlights the unique motion and actuation capabilities of cellulose‐based systems, focusing on their ability to convert external stimuli into mechanical movement. The recent progress in cellulose‐derived soft actuators that respond to moisture, electric fields, thermal and light input, and magnetic forces is detailed – enabling programmable shape changes, bending, twisting, and locomotion. Alongside these, cellulose‐based soft sensors that transduce environmental cues though magnetic, resistive and capacitive mechanisms are examined. Special emphasis is placed on the synergy between sensing and actuation in multifunctional devices that mimic natural movement and responsiveness. Applications in wearable devices, soft robotics, biomedical systems, energy harvesting, smart packaging, and bioinspired technologies are explored to demonstrate the practical potential of these materials. The challenges in achieving robust, reversible, and multi‐stimuli‐responsive motion are also addressed, and future directions for scaling up and integrating cellulose‐based smart systems into real‐world applications are proposed.

Cu4O(SeO3)3 is a copper-oxo-selenite belonging to the CuxO(SeO3)(x–1) family of the topological chiral magnet Cu2OSeO3. We report magnetometry and specific heat data measured in a monoclinic Cu4O(SeO3)3 single crystal grown through a Chemical Vapour Transport (CVT) reaction. Our study shows a typical antiferromagnetic behaviour, with a Néel temperature TN = 58 K, similar to that of the Cu2OSeO3 and an additional transition at 13 K. The effective magnetic moment per Cu atom is 1.84 μ B, close to the expected theoretical value for Cu2+. The low-temperature M(H) curves, show a transition starting at Hc1 ~ 400 Oe at 1.8 K shifting to a lower value of ~ 280 Oe at 30 K, likely from a helical into a conical intermediate phase, and a second transition at Hc2 ~ 1 kOe, above which the net moment increases linearly with applied field. The magnetisation moment value in a 90 kOe field is 0.053 μ B/Cu at 1.8 K and attains a maximum value of 0.061 μ B at 13 K. Low-temperature specific heat measurements confirm the presence of the magnetic transition at 13 K, slightly shifting to lower temperatures under an applied magnetic field.

One of the biggest obstacles to broadening the implementation of thermoelectric generators are the currently available thermoelectric materials, which tend to feature rare/expensive and toxic elements such as Bi, Pb or Te