Xinglong Pan

The growing demand for efficient water energy and resource management presents critical challenges to address pollution, energy, and resource extraction, as current methods suffer from high energy consumption, inefficiencies and environmental impact. The key lies in the development of coregulated materials structure and associated physical‐chemical properties, enabling efficient fluid management and molecular interactions crucial for advancing water‐power technologies. Herein, we develop hydrogel hollow filaments using a sustainable continuous‐assembly metamorphic (CAM) approach that achieves nonequilibrium hierarchical assembly, delivering control over conformational structure and attributes for integral water‐power innovations. This design principle of self‐organization transformation underpins collective properties and addresses prevalent fluidic perturbation and breakup issues in filament manufacturing. CAM hollow filaments demonstrate auto‐pumping differentiated ionic interaction, with key advancements including ∼1000% improvement in thermopower for energy harvesting, ∼90% efficiency in trace‐lithium ions collection. This work marks a new methodology of clean energy transition and resource sustainability, while aligning with the broader goals of clean energy and economic sustainability.

Mental health is a pressing and widespread global concern, necessitating accessible, reliable and cost‐effective tools for its ongoing monitoring and effective management. Herein, a portable “molecule‐probe” platform is presented that integrates a specific chemical reaction within a hydrogel microreactor with n ‐type semiconductor doping for signal amplification. This biologics‐free sensing platform enables rapid, sensitive cortisol detection, a key stress biomarker, with superior response time‐selectivity compared to conventional antibody‐, aptamer‐, or chemical‐based detection systems. The specific chemical reaction ensures over 50‐fold selectivity for cortisol against other biochemicals including cholesterol and glucose. Utilizing non‐invasive saliva‐based sampling and a biodegradable hydrogel matrix, the device offers low post‐waste and high cost‐effectiveness. With a short diagnosis time (∼ 8 min) and low production cost (∼ 7 dollars per unit, projected to drop to 4 dollars at scale), the portable sensor is particularly well‐suited for frequent, point‐of‐care applications in resource‐limited or decentralized healthcare settings. By eliminating costly biological recognition elements such as antibodies or aptamers and long diagnosis time, this work introduces a new design paradigm for sustainable biochemical sensing, enhancing accessibility to chronic stress monitoring and mental health assessment across socio‐economic boundaries.

The utilization of solar energy has been integral to biological evolution, industrial revolution, and humanity's journey across the past, present, and future, shaping both natural ecosystems and technological advancements.

A cascade photovoltaic platform transforms thermal management into simultaneous cooling and waste-heat electricity generation.

Cytomembranes with efficient ionic selectivity and energy circulation, essential for biological activities in multicellular organisms, are a source of inspiration for man‐made biomedical devices. However, current man‐made soft systems mainly imitate simple and passive cytomembranes behaviors, restrained by the grand challenge that lies at the meeting point of synchronous engineering of both (dynamic) ionic selectivity and (passive) transcellular‐like potential in one structure. Here a dynamically differentiated ionic electroresponse and passive incessant power output of an asymmetric bio‐hydrogel constructed using a simple self‐propagative flow approach are reported. The unprecedented freely formed p and n analogue hydrogels yield a transcellular‐like potential (110–200 mV) in response to diverse stimuli—where the cathode or anode is capable of perceivable electroresponse to water and/or salt media, respectively. A single hydrogel can generate an output power density of 135–190 mW m⁻² superior to most bio‐inspired soft and/or green power sources. The scalable manufacturing and proof‐of‐concept demonstration elucidate the feasibility of mobilizing passive and dynamic behaviors in one structure. This work has the potential for realizing high‐performance soft power sources in parallel to electrostimulation for neural excitation/inhibition, extending into the previously inaccessible region of biomedical applications.

Because of their low density, high electrical resistivity, and ease of processing, thermally conductive, anisotropic polymers are appealing for thermal management in applications related to personal comfort, sports, electronics, and optics. In this review, we discuss thermal transport in the different classes of anisotropic polymer fibers and films. The role of crystallinity, chain orientation, draw ratio, temperature, and chain length/molecular weight of these materials on the thermal transport will be discussed. A special emphasis is devoted to structure–property relationships and the influence of phonon scattering. Finally, some key challenges and future prospects of the anisotropic thermally conductive polymers and their use in devices are discussed.