Chemical vapour deposition (CVD) is a powerful technology for producing high-quality solid thin films and coatings. While widely used in modern industries, it is continuously being developed as it is adapted to new materials. Today, CVD synthesis is being pushed to new heights with the precise manufacturing of both inorganic thin films of two-dimensional (2D) materials and high-purity polymeric thin films that can be conformally deposited on various substrates. In this Primer, an overview of the CVD technique including instrument construction, process control, material characterization, and reproducibility issues is provided. By taking graphene, 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and polymeric thin films as typical examples, the best practices for experimentation involving substrate pre-treatment, hightemperature growth and post-growth processes are presented. Recent advances and scaling-up challenges are also highlighted. By analyzing current limitations and optimizations, we also provide insight into possible future directions for the method, including reactor design for highthroughput and low-temperature growth of thin films.

Previously, the primary product distribution resulting from fast pyrolysis of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin was quantified. This study extends the analysis to the examinations of interactions between cellulose-hemicellulose and cellulose-lignin, which were determined by comparing the pyrolysis products from their native mixture, physical mixture, and superposition of individual components. Negligible interactions were found for both binary physical mixtures. For the native cellulose-hemicellulose mixture, no significant interaction was identified either. In the case of the native cellulose-lignin mixture, herbaceous biomass exhibited an apparent interaction, represented by diminished yield of levoglucosan and enhanced yield of low molecular weight compounds and furans. However, such an interaction was not found for woody biomass. It is speculated that these results are due to different amounts of covalent linkages in these biomass samples. This study provides insight into the chemistry involved during the pyrolysis of multicomponent biomass, which can facilitate building a model for bio-oil composition prediction.

Cycle stability of solid-state lithium batteries (SSLBs) using a LiCoO 2 cathode is improved by atomic layer deposition (ALD) on active material powder with Al 2 O 3 . SSLBs with LiCoO 2 /Li 3.15 Ge 0.15 P 0.85 S 4 /77.5Li 2 S-22.5P 2 S 5 /Li structure were constructed and tested by charge-discharge cycling at a current density of 45 μA cm −2 with a voltage window of 3.3 ∼ 4.3 V (vs. Li/Li + ). Capacity degradation during cycling is suppressed dramatically by employing Al 2 O 3 ALD-coated LiCoO 2 in the composite cathode. Whereas only 70% of capacity retention is achieved for uncoated LiCoO 2 after 25 cycles, 90% of capacity retention is observed for LiCoO 2 with ALD Al 2 O 3 layers. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies show that the presence of ALD Al 2 O 3 layers on the surface of LiCoO 2 reduces interfacial resistance development between LiCoO 2 and solid state electrolyte (SSE) during cycling.

We report an ultraclean, cost-effective, and easily scalable method of transferring and patterning large-area graphene using pressure sensitive adhesive films (PSAFs) at room temperature. This simple transfer is enabled by the difference in wettability and adhesion energy of graphene with respect to PSAF and a target substrate. The PSAF-transferred graphene is found to be free from residues and shows excellent charge carrier mobility as high as ∼17,700 cm(2)/V·s with less doping compared to the graphene transferred by thermal release tape (TRT) or poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as well as good uniformity over large areas. In addition, the sheet resistance of graphene transferred by recycled PSAF does not change considerably up to 4 times, which would be advantageous for more cost-effective and environmentally friendly production of large-area graphene films for practical applications.

Increasing concerns regarding the sustainability of lithium sources, due to their limited availability and consequent expected price increase, have raised awareness of the importance of developing alternative energy-storage candidates that can sustain the ever-growing energy demand. Furthermore, limitations on the availability of the transition metals used in the manufacturing of cathode materials, together with questionable mining practices, are driving development towards more sustainable elements. Given the uniformly high abundance and cost-effectiveness of sodium, as well as its very suitable redox potential (close to that of lithium), sodium-ion battery technology offers tremendous potential to be a counterpart to lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in different application scenarios, such as stationary energy storage and low-cost vehicles. This potential is reflected by the major investments that are being made by industry in a wide variety of markets and in diverse material combinations. Despite the associated advantages of being a drop-in replacement for LIBs, there are remarkable differences in the physicochemical properties between sodium and lithium that give rise to different behaviours, for example, different coordination preferences in compounds, desolvation energies, or solubility of the solid–electrolyte interphase inorganic salt components. This demands a more detailed study of the underlying physical and chemical processes occurring in sodium-ion batteries and allows great scope for groundbreaking advances in the field, from lab-scale to scale-up. This roadmap provides an extensive review by experts in academia and industry of the current state of the art in 2021 and the different research directions and strategies currently underway to improve the performance of sodium-ion batteries. The aim is to provide an opinion with respect to the current challenges and opportunities, from the fundamental properties to the practical applications of this technology.

We have developed a fast solid state Li ion conductor composed of LiBH4 and SiO2 by means of interface engineering. A composite of LiBH4-SiO2 was simply synthesized by high energy ball-milling, and two types of SiO2 (MCM-41 and fumed silica) having different specific surface areas were used to evaluate the effect of the LiBH4/SiO2 interface on the ionic conductivity enhancement. The ionic conductivity of the ball-milled LiBH4-MCM-41 and LiBH4-fumed silica mixture is as high as 10(-5) S cm(-1) and 10(-4) S cm(-1) at room temperature, respectively. In particular, the conductivity of the latter is comparable to the LiBH4 melt-infiltrated into MCM-41. The conductivities of the LiBH4-fumed silica mixtures at different mixing ratios were analyzed employing a continuum percolation model, and the conductivity of the LiBH4/SiO2 interface layer is estimated to be 10(5) times higher than that of pure bulk LiBH4. The result highlights the importance of the interface and indicates that significant enhancement in ionic conductivity can be achieved via interface engineering.

Although lignin is one of the main components of biomass, its pyrolysis chemistry is not well understood due to complex heterogeneity.

These results suggest that a GIMAP cluster is a novel susceptibility locus for BD, which is involved in T-cell survival, and T-cell aberration can contribute to the development of BD.