There is a constant drive for development of ultrahigh performance multifunctional construction materials by the modern engineering technologies. These materials have to exhibit enhanced durability and mechanical performance, and have to incorporate functionalities that satisfy multiple uses in order to be suitable for future emerging structural applications. There is a wide consensus in the research community that concrete, the most used construction material worldwide, has to be engineered at the nanoscale, where its chemical and physiomechanical properties can be truly enhanced. Here, an innovative multifunctional nanoengineered concrete showing an unprecedented range of enhanced properties when compared to standard concrete, is reported. These include an increase of up to 146% in the compressive and 79.5% in the flexural strength, whilst at the same time an enhanced electrical and thermal performance is found. A surprising decrease in water permeability by nearly 400% compared to normal concrete makes this novel composite material ideally suitable for constructions in areas subject to flooding. The unprecedented gamut of functionalities that are reported in this paper are produced by the addition of water‐stabilized graphene dispersions, an advancement in the emerging field of nanoengineered concrete which can be readily applied in a more sustainable construction industry.

The rise of atomically thin materials has the potential to enable a paradigm shift in modern technologies by introducing multi-functional materials in the semiconductor industry. To date the growth of high quality atomically thin semiconductors (e.g. WS₂) is one of the most pressing challenges to unleash the potential of these materials and the growth of mono- or bi-layers with high crystal quality is yet to see its full realization. Here, we show that the novel use of molecular precursors in the controlled synthesis of mono- and bi-layer WS₂ leads to superior material quality compared to the widely used direct sulfidization of WO₃-based precursors. Record high room temperature charge carrier mobility up to 52 cm²/Vs and ultra-sharp photoluminescence linewidth of just 36 meV over submillimeter areas demonstrate that the quality of this material supersedes also that of naturally occurring materials. By exploiting surface diffusion kinetics of W and S species adsorbed onto a substrate, a deterministic layer thickness control has also been achieved promoting the design of scalable synthesis routes.

2D material compatible, writable, and high- k multifunctional oxide facilitates next-generation flexible van der Waals electronics.

Transient currents in atomically thin MoTe₂ field‐effect transistors (FETs) are measured during cycles of pulses through the gate electrode. The curves of the transient currents are analyzed in light of a newly proposed model for charge‐trapping dynamics that renders a time‐dependent change in the threshold voltage as the dominant effect on the channel hysteretic behavior over emission currents from the charge traps. The proposed model is expected to be instrumental in understanding the fundamental physics that governs the performance of atomically thin FETs and is applicable to the entire class of atomically thin‐based devices. Hence, the model is vital to the intelligent design of fast and highly efficient optoelectronic devices.

We report a specific, label-free and real-time detection of femtomolar protein concentrations with a novel type of nanowire-based biosensor. The biosensor is based on an electrostatically formed nanowire, which is conceptually different from a conventional silicon nanowire in its confinement potential, charge carrier distribution, surface states, dopant distribution, moveable channel and geometrical structure. This new biosensor requires standard integrated-circuit processing with relaxed fabrication requirements. The biosensor is composed of an accumulation-type, planar transistor surrounded by four gates, a backgate, front gate and two lateral gates, and it operates in the all-around-depletion mode. Consequently, adjustment of the four gates defines the dimensions and location of the conducting channel. It is shown that lithographically shaped channels of 400 nm in width are reduced to effective widths of 25 nm upon lateral-gate biasing. Device operation is demonstrated for protein-specific binding, and it is found that sensitive detection signals are recorded once the channel width is comparable with the dimensions of the protein. The device performance is discussed and analyzed with the help of three-dimensional electrostatic simulations.