Nature Nanotechnology

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A journal that covers all aspects of nanoscale science and technology. 🌐 https://www.nature.com/nnano/ 📍Berlin, London and Shanghai. Part of Nature Portfolio.

The cover image shows a 2D–3D spiral heterostructure formed by coherent van der Waals epitaxy of 3D perovskite single crystals on a 2D perovskite template. Image: Ming Xia, Westlake University. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan. Original paper: Ming Xia (夏明) et al. Coherent 2D–3D van der Waals perovskite epitaxial heterostructures. Nat. Nanotechnol. 21, 948–956 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-026-02201-5 Abstract Precise control and a clear understanding of the interfaces between 2D and 3D perovskites remain limited by structural disorder, interfacial defects and poorly defined growth pathways. Here we report a strategy for coherent van der Waals cross-dimensional epitaxy, in which 3D MASnI3 (MA: methylammonium) single crystals are grown directly on 2D (3T)2SnI4 (3T: tri-thiophenylethylammonium) templates. This approach achieves deterministic control over domain orientation, density and coverage, yielding planar heterostructures with atomically sharp and structurally coherent interfaces. Low-dose aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy and ptychographic imaging resolve the heterointerface in real space, revealing ordered spacer ligands and uniform interfacial passivation. The epitaxial growth tolerates topological defects in the 2D templates, giving rise to spiral heterostructures with pronounced chiroptical responses. The method further extends from microscale domains to macroscopic single-crystal heterostructure thin films, bridging fundamental epitaxy and device-relevant architectures. These heterostructures support efficient charge separation and transport, exhibiting gate-tunable rectification ratios exceeding 106 with robust operational stability. These results define a general route to coherent cross-dimensional epitaxy and establish a versatile platform for scalable perovskite optoelectronics.
The pseudocolour image shows B cells (green) on cancer cells (pink) seen with an electron microscope. Nanoparticle-mediated recruitment of B cells into tumours can exert an anti-tumour effect and generate immune memory that prevents relapse. Aggarwal, H., Gupta, N., Sengupta, A. et al. Activating a B cell immune response regresses immunologically cold tumours. Nat. Nanotechnol. 21, 892–903 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-026-02170-9
The image features the molecular structure of water, whose ground-state energy is computed using a logical quantum processor in silicon. Using two logical qubits, a variational quantum eigensolver calculates the electronic ground state of the water molecule.
The cover page illustrates the evolution of magnetic domains in 0.5° twisted double bilayer CrI3, where emergent textures extend far beyond the unit moiré cell. See article: Super-moiré spin textures in twisted two-dimensional antiferromagnets https://www.nature.com/articles/s41565-025-02103-y IMAGE: Jackson Ross/Ruoming Peng/Elton Santos. COVER DESIGN: Vanitha Selvarajan
Image: Ella Maru Studio. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan. The cover image shows a defect-modified carbon nanotube interacting with proteins in blood. These interactions form a biomolecular corona for sensing biomarkers responsible for brain tumours. Article by Goerzen, D., et al. Machine perception liquid biopsy identifies brain tumours via systemic immune and tumour microenvironment signature. Nat. Nanotechnol. 21, 277–287 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-02080-2 Abstract The detection and identification of intracranial tumours is limited by the lack of accurate biomarkers and requires invasive biopsy procedures. We investigated a machine perception liquid biopsy approach to detect and identify intracranial tumours from peripheral blood and to discover biomarkers responsible for the predictions. Quantum well defect-modified single-walled carbon nanotubes stabilized with single-stranded DNA, interrogating 739 plasma samples from brain tumour patients, were used to train and validate machine-learning models to detect intracranial tumours with 98% accuracy and identify tumour type. The protein corona of the top model-contributing nanosensor was interrogated using quantitative proteomics, resulting in the identification of tumour ecosystem-secreted factors, both previously reported and newly discovered, originating from intracranial tumour cells, the tumour microenvironment and the innate immune system of patients with glioblastoma and meningioma. Newly discovered factors elicited linear nanosensor responses and were elevated in one or both tumour types, matching the original protein corona enrichment. This investigation reveals that a perception-based detection of disease in blood can identify biomarkers responsible for the signal and also amplify cancer detection signals by detecting factors beyond tumour cells, thereby recruiting the entire tumour ecosystem for cancer diagnosis.
COVER IMAGE Supra-recyclable polymers The image on the cover shows monomer crystals directly recycled from supramolecular polymers without using catalysts or solvents. Article: s41565-025-02041-9 Image: Ling Liu, East China University of Science and Technology Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan
The image on the cover shows two sugars from the same cell-surface glycan separated by 9 Å, visualized with RESI (resolution enhancement by sequential imaging) enabled by metabolic labelling with DNA barcodes. IMAGE: Luciano A. Masullo, Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Germany. COVER DESIGN: Vanitha Selvarajan Original paper: Masullo, L.A., et al. Ångström-resolution imaging of cell-surface glycans. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 1457–1463 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01966-5 Abstract: Glycobiology is rooted in the study of monosaccharides, ångström-sized molecules that are the building blocks of glycosylation. Glycosylated biomolecules form the glycocalyx, a dense coat encasing every human cell with central relevance—among others—in immunology, oncology and virology. To understand glycosylation function, visualizing its molecular structure is fundamental. However, the ability to visualize the molecular architecture of the glycocalyx has remained challenging. Techniques such as mass spectrometry, electron microscopy and fluorescence microscopy lack the necessary cellular context, specificity and resolution. Here we combine resolution enhancement by sequential imaging with metabolic labelling, enabling the visualization of individual sugars within glycans on the cell surface, thus obtaining images of the glycocalyx with a spatial resolution down to 9 Å in an optical microscope.
Nanoneedle arrays classify disease states The cover image illustrates a nanoneedle chip applied to live brain tissue to sample biomolecules for spatiotemporal lipidomics. Original article: Gu, C., et al. Nanoneedles enable spatiotemporal lipidomics of living tissues. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 1262–1272 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01955-8 Image: Ziqi Zhang (Seamless Design Shanghai) and Ciro Chiappini (King’s College London). Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan Abstract Spatial biology provides high-content diagnostic information by mapping the molecular composition of tissues. However, traditional spatial biology approaches typically require non-living samples, limiting temporal analysis. Here, to address this limitation, we present a workflow using porous silicon nanoneedles to repeatedly collect biomolecules from live brain tissues and map lipid distribution through desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry imaging. This method preserves the integrity of the original tissue while replicating its spatial molecular profile on the nanoneedle substrate, accurately reflecting lipid distribution and tissue morphology. Machine learning analysis of 23 human glioma biopsies demonstrated that nanoneedle sampling enables the precise classification of disease states. Furthermore, a spatiotemporal analysis of mouse gliomas treated with temozolomide revealed time- and treatment-dependent variations in lipid composition. Our approach enables non-destructive spatiotemporal lipidomics, advancing molecular diagnostics for precision medicine.
The Evolution of Nanomotors Over 20 Years and Beyond. Early research focused on achieving controlled motion at the single-particle level, powered by energy harvesting from various external sources or in situ chemical reactions. As studies progressed, particle–particle interactions inspired developments in multi-agent control and the emergence of nanomotor assemblies. More recently, swarming behaviours have demonstrated higher levels of autonomy and navigation, mimicking collective behaviours found in nature. Looking ahead, future nanomotors are expected to possess precise control, environmental responsiveness, information storage and retrieval, task execution, and multifunctional capabilities. Chen, S., Fan, D.E., Fischer, P. et al. A roadmap for next-generation nanomotors. Nat. Nanotechnol. (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01962-9
The image shows the time–space concentration profile of alkali metal ions during the operation of CO2 electrolysers, elucidating catalyst and electrode degradation in these devices. Image Credits: Qiucheng Xu (DTU, Lygby, Denmark). Cover Design: Vanitha Selvarajan. Original article: Xu, Q., et al. Operando X-ray characterization platform to unravel catalyst degradation under accelerated stress testing in CO2 electrolysis. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 889–896 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01916-1 Abstract Membrane-electrode assembly (MEA)-based CO2 electrolysis shows great potential for industrial-scale chemical production, but long-term stability remains a key challenge. The degradation mechanisms of catalysts and electrodes in MEAs are not yet fully understood. Here a customized operando synchrotron X-ray characterization platform was established to track the time- and space-resolved evolution of ions and water movement, crystal structure and catalyst variations in MEAs. Using Au and Ag model catalysts, we show that the crystalline phase catalyst stability and catalyst–substrate adhesion are critical to MEA durability. Small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering analysis reveals that Au catalysts, with their robust crystal structure and stable catalyst–substrate adhesion, maintain stability under accelerated stress tests, whereas Ag catalysts degrade due to particle agglomeration, an undesirable dissolution–recrystallization process and detachment. This study demonstrates the advanced capabilities of operando X-ray techniques in elucidating catalyst and electrode degradation in CO2 electrolysers.
The cover image captures a snapshot of the cubic methylammonium lead tribromide perovskite lattice dynamics, revealing a picosecond-lived octahedral out-of-phase tilt nanodomain that has a significant influence on the material's macroscopic performance. Dubajic, M., et al. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 755–763 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01917-0 Abstract Lead halide perovskites have emerged as promising materials for solar energy conversion and X-ray detection owing to their remarkable optoelectronic properties. However, the microscopic origins of their superior performance remain unclear. Here we show that low-symmetry dynamic nanodomains present in the high-symmetry average cubic phases, whose characteristics are dictated by the A-site cation, govern the macroscopic behaviour. We combine X-ray diffuse scattering, inelastic neutron spectroscopy, hyperspectral photoluminescence microscopy and machine-learning-assisted molecular dynamics simulations to directly correlate local nanoscale dynamics with macroscopic optoelectronic response. Our approach reveals that methylammonium-based perovskites form densely packed, anisotropic dynamic nanodomains with out-of-phase octahedral tilting, whereas formamidinium-based systems develop sparse, isotropic, spherical nanodomains with in-phase tilting, even when crystallography reveals cubic symmetry on average. We demonstrate that these sparsely distributed isotropic nanodomains present in formamidinium-based systems reduce electronic dynamic disorder, resulting in a beneficial optoelectronic response, thereby enhancing the performance of formamidinium-based lead halide perovskite devices. By elucidating the influence of the A-site cation on local dynamic nanodomains, and consequently, on the macroscopic properties, we propose leveraging this relationship to engineer the optoelectronic response of these materials, propelling further advancements in perovskite-based photovoltaics, optoelectronics, and X-ray imaging.
Coverline: Synthetic cells get RNA origami hardware. The image on the cover shows co-transcriptionally folded RNA nanorings, highlighting the phenotypic plasticity of RNA origami cytoskeletal structures. Image: Mai P. Tran, Heidelberg University. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan Citation: Tran, M.P., Chakraborty, T., Poppleton, E. et al. Genetic encoding and expression of RNA origami cytoskeletons in synthetic cells. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 664–671 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01879-3 Abstract: Bottom-up synthetic biology seeks to engineer a cell from molecular building blocks. Using DNA nanotechnology, building blocks, such as cytoskeletons, have been reverse-engineered. However, DNA nanostructures rely on chemical synthesis and thermal annealing, and therefore synthetic cells cannot produce them from their constituents such as nucleotides. Here we introduce RNA origami cytoskeleton mimics as alternative nucleic acid-based molecular hardware for synthetic cells, which we express directly inside giant unilamellar lipid vesicles (GUVs) containing a DNA template and a polymerase, chemically fuelled by feeding nucleotides from the outside. We designed RNA origami tiles that fold upon transcription and self-assemble into micrometre-long, three-dimensional RNA origami nanotubes under isothermal conditions. We observe that sequence mutations on the DNA template lead to RNA origami nanotubes and closed-ring phenotypes. Molecular dynamics simulations show that these phenotypic transitions are governed by alterations in the stability of RNA secondary structures. In addition, we achieve cortex formation with aptamer-functionalized RNA nanotubes and show that nanotube polymerization leads to membrane deformation. Altogether, our data suggest that the expression of RNA origami-based hardware will help to explore active, evolvable and RNA-based synthetic cells.
The image on the cover shows the in-plane polarization of polar nanodomains of a 10-nm-thick 0.68PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3-0.32PbTiO3 relaxor ferroelectric thin film. Image: Jieun Kim (KAIST), Yubo Qi (University of Alabama at Birmingham). Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan. Original article: Kim, J. et al. Size-driven phase evolution in ultrathin relaxor films. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 478–486 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-025-01863-x Abstract: Relaxor ferroelectrics (relaxors) are a special class of ferroelectrics with polar nanodomains (PNDs), which present characteristics such as slim hysteresis loops and strong dielectric relaxation. Applications such as nanoelectromechanical systems, capacitive-energy storage and pyroelectric-energy harvesters require thin-film relaxors. Hence, understanding relaxor behaviour in the ultrathin limit is of both fundamental and technological importance. Here the evolution of relaxor phases and PNDs with thickness is explored in prototypical thin relaxor films. Epitaxial 0.68PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3-0.32PbTiO3 films of various nanometre thicknesses are grown by pulsed-laser deposition and characterized by ferroelectric and dielectric measurements, temperature-dependent synchrotron X-ray diffuse scattering, scanning transmission electron microscopy and molecular dynamics simulations. As the film thickness approaches the length of the long axis of the PNDs (25–30 nm), electrostatically driven phase instabilities induce their rotation towards the plane of the films, stabilize the relaxor behaviour and give rise to anisotropic phase evolution along the out-of-plane and in-plane directions. The complex anisotropic evolution of relaxor properties ends in a collapse of the relaxor behaviour when the film thickness reaches the smallest dimension of the PNDs (6–10 nm). These findings establish that PNDs define the critical length scale for the evolution of relaxor behaviour at the nanoscale.
The image on the cover shows artistic representation of the formation process of a sodium fluoride interphase on a sodium metal surface by the reduction of fluorinated sodium salts solvated by a presalt solvent. Image: Xi Chen, University of Maryland. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan. Original article: Li, AM., Zavalij, P.Y., Omenya, F. et al. Salt-in-presalt electrolyte solutions for high-potential non-aqueous sodium metal batteries. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 388–396 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-024-01848-2 Abstract Room-temperature non-aqueous sodium metal batteries are viable candidates for cost-effective and safe electrochemical energy storage. However, they show low specific energy and poor cycle life as the use of conventional organic-based non-aqueous electrolyte solutions enables the formation of interphases that cannot prevent degradations at the positive and negative electrodes. Here, to promote the formation of inorganic NaF-rich interphases on both negative and positive electrodes, we propose the salt-in-presalt (SIPS) electrolyte formulation strategy. In SIPS, sodium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (NaFSI) salt is dissolved in the liquid precursor of the sodium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (NaTFSI) salt, that is, N,N-dimethyltrifluoromethane-sulfonamide, called PreTFSI. The prepared 0.5 M NaFSI in PreTFSI (SIPS5) electrolyte solution shows an electrochemical stability up to 6.7 V versus Na|Na+ and enables a Na stripping/plating average Coulombic efficiency of 99.7% at 2.0 mA cm−2 and 4.0 mAh cm−2 in Na||Al cell configuration. By testing SIPS5 in Na metal and ‘anode-less’ coin and pouch cell configurations using NaNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 or sulfurized polyacrylonitrile as positive electrode active materials, we demonstrate the ability of the SIPS strategy to deliver improved specific discharge capacity and capacity retentions at high cell potentials and moderate applied specific currents for cell cycle life up to 1,000 cycles.
The cover image shows numerical simulations of entanglement generation and distribution across an array of qubits, each encoded in the joint state of two hole spins. Image credits: Elizaveta Morozova, Xin Zhang, Vandersypen Lab, QuTech, Delft University of Technology. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan. Source article: Universal control of four singlet–triplet qubits. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 209–215 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-024-01817-9 Abstract: The coherent control of interacting spins in semiconductor quantum dots is of strong interest for quantum information processing and for studying quantum magnetism from the bottom up. Here we present a 2 × 4 germanium quantum dot array with full and controllable interactions between nearest-neighbour spins. As a demonstration of the level of control, we define four singlet–triplet qubits in this system and show two-axis single-qubit control of each qubit and SWAP-style two-qubit gates between all neighbouring qubit pairs, yielding average single-qubit gate fidelities of 99.49(8)–99.84(1)% and Bell state fidelities of 73(1)–90(1)%. Combining these operations, we experimentally implement a circuit designed to generate and distribute entanglement across the array. A remote Bell state with a fidelity of 75(2)% and concurrence of 22(4)% is achieved. These results highlight the potential of singlet–triplet qubits as a competing platform for quantum computing and indicate that scaling up the control of quantum dot spins in extended bilinear arrays can be feasible.
Image shows optoelectronic memristor cells to be fully integrated as a 128 × 8 multi-mode array for in-sensor computing applications. Image: Heyi Huang, Tsinghua University. Cover design: Vanitha Selvarajan Citation: Huang, H., Liang, X., Wang, Y. et al. Fully integrated multi-mode optoelectronic memristor array for diversified in-sensor computing. Nat. Nanotechnol. 20, 93–103 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-024-01794-z Abstract In-sensor computing, which integrates sensing, memory and processing functions, has shown substantial potential in artificial vision systems. However, large-scale monolithic integration of in-sensor computing based on emerging devices with complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) circuits remains challenging, lacking functional demonstrations at the hardware level. Here we report a fully integrated 1-kb array with 128 × 8 one-transistor one-optoelectronic memristor (OEM) cells and silicon CMOS circuits, which features configurable multi-mode functionality encompassing three different modes of electronic memristor, dynamic OEM and non-volatile OEM (NV-OEM). These modes are configured by modulating the charge density within the oxygen vacancies via synergistic optical and electrical operations, as confirmed by differential phase-contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy. Using this OEM system, three visual processing tasks are demonstrated: image sensory pre-processing with a recognition accuracy enhanced from 85.7% to 96.1% by the NV-OEM mode, more advanced object tracking with 96.1% accuracy using both dynamic OEM and NV-OEM modes and human motion recognition with a fully OEM-based in-sensor reservoir computing system achieving 91.2% accuracy. A system-level benchmark further shows that it consumes over 20 times less energy than graphics processing units. By monolithically integrating the multi-functional OEMs with Si CMOS, this work provides a cost-effective platform for diverse in-sensor computing applications.
The image on the cover shows a 3D-printed sculpture composed of nanoscale gyroid crystals in titania that exhibit optical chirality under visible light. Citation: Zhang, W., Min, J., Wang, H. et al. Printing of 3D photonic crystals in titania with complete bandgap across the visible spectrum. Nat. Nanotechnol. 19, 1813–1820 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-024-01780-5 Abstract: A photonic bandgap is a range of wavelengths wherein light is forbidden from entering a photonic crystal, similar to the electronic bandgap in semiconductors. Fabricating photonic crystals with a complete photonic bandgap in the visible spectrum presents at least two important challenges: achieving a material refractive index > ~2 and a three-dimensional patterning resolution better than ~280 nm (lattice constant of 400 nm). Here we show an approach to overcome such limitations using additive manufacturing, thus realizing high-quality, high-refractive index photonic crystals with size-tunable bandgaps across the visible spectrum. We develop a titanium ion-doped resin (Ti-Nano) for high-resolution printing by two-photon polymerization lithography. After printing, the structures are heat-treated in air to induce lattice shrinkage and produce titania nanostructures. We attain three-dimensional photonic crystals with patterning resolution as high as 180 nm and refractive index of 2.4–2.6. Optical characterization reveals ~100% reflectance within the photonic crystal bandgap in the visible range. Finally, we show capabilities in defining local defects and demonstrate proof-of-principle applications in spectrally selective perfect reflectors and chiral light discriminators.