Beyond graphene, transitional metal dichalcogenides, and black phosphorus, there are other layered materials called metal thiophosphites (MPS), which are recently attracting the attention of scientists. Here we present the synthesis, structural and morphological characterization, magnetic properties, electrochemical performance, and the calculated density of states of different layered metal thiophosphite materials with a general formula MPS, and as a result of varying the metal component, we obtain CrPS, MnPS, FePS, CoPS, NiPS, ZnPS, CdPS, GaPS, SnPS, and BiPS. SnPS, ZnPS, CdPS, GaPS, and BiPS exhibit only diamagnetic behavior due to core electrons. By contrast, trisulfides with M = Mn, Fe, Co, and Ni, as well as CrPS, are paramagnetic at high temperatures and undergo a transition to antiferromagnetic state on cooling. Within the trisulfides series the Néel temperature characterizing the transition from paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic phase increases with the increasing atomic number and the orbital component enhancing the total effective magnetic moment. Interestingly, in terms of catalysis NiPS, CoPS, and BiPS show the highest efficiency for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), while for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) the highest performance is observed for CoPS. Finally, MnPS presents the highest oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity compared to the other MPS studied here. This great catalytic performance reported for these MPS demonstrates their promising capabilities in energy applications.

The number of layered materials seems to be ever-growing, from mono- to multielement, with affiliates and applications being tested continuously. Chalcogenophosphites, also designated as metal phosphorus chalcogenides (MPX n ), have attracted great interest because of not only their magnetic properties but also promising capabilities in energy applications. Herein, bulk crystals of different layered metal triselenophosphites, with a general formula MPSe3 (M = Cd, Cr, Fe, Mn, Sn, Zn), were synthesized. Structural and morphological characterization was performed prior to testing their electrochemical performance. From the set of ternary layered materials, FePSe3, followed by MnPSe3, yielded the highest efficiency for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) both in acidic and alkaline media with good stability after 100 cycles. MnPSe3 also holds the lowest oxidation potential for cysteine, although this is due to the presence of MnO2 in the structure as detected by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. For the oxygen evolution reaction, the best performance was observed for FePSe3, although the stability of the material was not as good as in the case of HER. These findings have profound implications in the application of these layered ternary compounds in energy-related fields.

The layered structure of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2 ) is structurally similar to that of graphite, with individual sheets strongly covalently bonded within but held together through weak van der Waals interactions. This results in two distinct surfaces of MoS2 : basal and edge planes. The edge plane was theoretically predicted to be more electroactive than the basal plane, but evidence from direct experimental comparison is elusive. Herein, the first study comparing the two surfaces of MoS2 by using macroscopic crystals is presented. A careful investigation of the electrochemical properties of macroscopic MoS2 pristine crystals with precise control over the exposure of one plane surface, that is, basal plane or edge plane, was performed. These crystals were characterized thoroughly by AFM, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, voltammetry, digital simulation, and DFT calculations. In the Raman spectra, the basal and edge planes show anisotropy in the preferred excitation of E2g and A1g phonon modes, respectively. The edge plane exhibits a much larger heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant k(0) of 4.96×10(-5) and 1.1×10(-3)  cm s(-1) for [Fe(CN)6 ](3-/4-) and [Ru(NH3 )6 ](3+/2+) redox probes, respectively, compared to the basal plane, which yielded k(0) tending towards zero for [Fe(CN)6 ](3-/4-) and about 9.3×10(-4)  cm s(-1) for [Ru(NH3 )6 ](3+/2+) . The industrially important hydrogen evolution reaction follows the trend observed for [Fe(CN)6 ](3-/4-) in that the basal plane is basically inactive. The experimental comparison of the edge and basal planes of MoS2 crystals is supported by DFT calculations.

Layered elemental materials, such as black phosphorus, exhibit unique properties originating from their highly anisotropic layered structure. The results presented herein demonstrate an anomalous anisotropy for the electrical, magnetic, and electrochemical properties of black phosphorus. It is shown that heterogeneous electron transfer from black phosphorus to outer- and inner-sphere molecular probes is highly anisotropic. The electron-transfer rates differ at the basal and edge planes. These unusual properties were interpreted by means of calculations, manifesting the metallic character of the edge planes as compared to the semiconducting properties of the basal plane. This indicates that black phosphorus belongs to a group of materials known as topological insulators. Consequently, these effects render the magnetic properties highly anisotropic, as both diamagnetic and paramagnetic behavior can be observed depending on the orientation in the magnetic field.

Room temperature ferromagnetism is found in (Sn 1Ϫx M x)O 2 (M ϭMn, Fe, Co, xϭ0.05) ceramics where x-ray diffraction confirms the formation of a rutile-structure phase. Room temperature saturation magnetization of 0.2 and 1.8 Am 2 kg Ϫ1 for (Sn 0.95 Mn 0.05)O 2 and (Sn 0.95 Fe 0.05)O 2 , respectively, corresponds to a moment of 0.11 or 0.95 B per Mn or Fe atom. The Curie temperatures are 340 and 360 K, respectively. The magnetization cannot be attributed to any identified impurity phase. 57 Fe Mössbauer spectra of the Fe-doped SnO 2 samples, recorded at room temperature and 16 K, show that about 85% of the iron is in a magnetically ordered high spin Fe 3ϩ state, the remainder being paramagnetic.