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.