Multifunctional Three-Dimensional Porous MXene-Based Film with Superior Electromagnetic Wave Absorption and Flexible Electronics Performance

Abstract The development of multifunctional electromagnetic wave-absorbing materials is essential for next-generation flexible electronics and intelligent protection systems. Herein, a novel three-dimensional porous MXene-based film integrated with metallic nickel nanoparticles (Ni-PMF) is designed and synthesized with the potential to address the urgent need for multifunctional electromagnetic wave-absorbing materials in next-generation intelligent systems. By using polystyrene spheres as sacrificial templates, a hierarchical porous architecture is constructed to prevent MXene nanosheet restacking, extend electromagnetic wave propagation paths, and optimize impedance matching. Simultaneously, uniformly distributed Ni nanoparticles introduce abundant heterogeneous interfaces, enhancing interfacial polarization and magnetic loss, which significantly improve electromagnetic wave attenuation. The Ni-PMF film achieves a minimum reflection loss of –64.7 dB and a broad effective absorption bandwidth of 7.2 GHz, covering the full Ku-band and outperforming most reported MXene thin film absorbers. In addition to superior electromagnetic wave absorption, the film demonstrates excellent electrothermal conversion and flexible strain-sensing capabilities, enabling integrated protection and real-time sensing functions. This multifunctional material offers promising potential for next-generation smart flexible electronic systems.