Dielectric genes editing MXene to switch electromagnetic functions

Electromagnetic (EM) functional materials with a single function have been difficult to match the rapid development of satellite communication, artificial intelligence, and the 6G Internet of Things. Herein, we prepare MXene/TiO₂ composites by a facile annealing treatment and investigate the effects of the annealing on EM properties. Benefiting from the editable conduction and polarization genes, the optimized MXene/TiO₂ composites achieve a tradeoff between EM energy loss and reflection, with dual functions of excellent EM absorption and shielding performance at an annealing temperature of 300 °C. Importantly, based on the EM response characteristics of the MXene/TiO₂, the EM energy conversion device, strain sensor, and ultra-wideband (UWB) absorber are customized. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed UWB absorber insensitive to oblique incidence and polarization achieves the performance of S₁₁ less than − 10 dB from 1 to 20 GHz; the EM response signal of the strain sensor is sensitive to structural deformation and can effectively predict the device safety status; the EM energy conversion device can realize the recycling the waste EM energy. This work provides a novel and feasible strategy for developing advanced multifunctional materials, which will have enormous prospects in EM protection, EM pollution management, military camouflage fields, etc. Graphical abstract: (Figure presented.)