Biomass-derived carbon-coated WS₂ core-shell nanostructures with excellent electromagnetic absorption in C-band

With the continuous advances in detection and early-warning technologies, stealth technologies have widely integrated in modern combat systems and armament research. The development of high-performance electromagnetic wave absorbing materials is important for electromagnetic stealth and shielding applications. Herein, biomass-derived carbon (BDC) from glucose is coated on the surface of folded and stacked WS₂ nanosheets, forming WS₂@BDC via a simple hydrothermal method and subsequent annealing carbonization. The amount of the BDC coating on the WS₂ nanosheets is effectively controlled by the glucose solution concentration, and the electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance in the low-frequency bands can be adjusted by the regulation of annealing temperature. The effective absorption band of WS₂@BDC is shifted to a lower frequency region and the absorption performance is substantially enhanced, compared to those of pure WS₂ nanosheets. The minimum reflection loss of WS₂@BDC corresponding to 14 mL of glucose and a carbonization temperature of 800 °C can reach up to −51.40 dB at 5.52 GHz. The study provides a novel and facile method for improving the EMW absorption performance of WS₂ in the low-frequency bands.