Enhancing dipole polarization loss in conjugated metal-organic frameworks via coordination symmetry breaking under electromagnetic field

Modulating the dipole polarization loss in the single-atom region and establishing its direct relationship with the electromagnetic wave absorption (EWA) performance remain an unmet challenge. Here, a dual-ligand modulation strategy, i.e., partially changing coordination atoms in the single-metal region (sMr), is introduced to effectively break the coordination symmetry of conjugated metal-organic frameworks (cMOFs), finally enhancing EWA property of cMOFs materials. Further, the asymmetrical sMr is experimentally found to elicit the dipole polarization loss, overcoming the handicaps of other electromagnetic wave loss mechanisms, which directly contribution to enhance EWA performance of this series of cMOFs. This strategy is further confirmed by replacing metal centers. Among studied series of cMOFs, Cu2.25/Co0.75(HHTP1.67HITP0.33) achieves excellent EWA performance with an effective absorption bandwidth of 5.00 ​GHz and a reflection loss of −66.03 ​dB. We introduce a dual-ligand modulation strategy targeting single-metal regions within cMOFs here, aiming to achieve superior EWA performance through atomic-scale dipole polarization loss modulation. We hope our study can inspire more exploration to realize high-performance EWA materials.