Hierarchical modular architecture enabling intelligent dynamic thermal management and superior electromagnetic interference shielding

As extreme weather events intensify and wearable electronics proliferate, maintaining personal thermal comfort while ensuring electromagnetic safety has become a critical challenge. Conventional thermal management systems lack environmental awareness and stable human-machine interaction, while EMI from electronic components poses serious health risks. Now, researchers from Beihang University, led by Professor Guang-Sheng Wang and Professor Xiangyu Jiang, have developed a breakthrough hierarchical modular film system that integrates intelligent thermal regulation with exceptional electromagnetic interference shielding.

Why This Integration Matters

Traditional wearable devices treat thermal management and electromagnetic protection as separate functions, leading to bulky, inefficient systems. The team addresses this limitation through a hierarchical modular design strategy that couples biomimetic temperature-humidity sensing with dual-mode heating and ultrahigh EMI shielding—creating a "monitoring-feedback-protection" closed-loop system in a single flexible platform.

Innovative Design and Mechanism

The XSBR/MXene (XM) film employs a sandwich architecture: highly oriented MXene nanosheets form a dense conductive core (orientation factor 0.79) for EMI shielding and photothermal conversion, while gradient MXene distribution in outer layers enables low-power Joule heating. Crucially, surface-anchored serpentine sensors integrate PEDOT:PSS temperature sensors and PVA/KOH humidity sensors, utilizing percolation effects and ion migration for sensitive detection. This modular approach optimizes functional allocation while enhancing decoupling and synergy between components.

Outstanding Performance

The system delivers exceptional metrics: EMI SE/t of 1600 dB mm^-1 at just 35μm thickness—among the highest reported—ensuring stable signal transmission. Dual-mode thermal management achieves 51.79°C at 1.5V (electrothermal) and 56.38°C at 45.51 mW cm^-2 (photothermal), enabling collaborative heating under diverse conditions. The integrated sensors demonstrate linear temperature response (R² = 0.97, 30–50°C) and exponential humidity sensitivity (R² = 0.99, 20–60% RH), enabling real-time health monitoring and intelligent feedback control for hypothermia prevention and de-icing applications.

Future Outlook

This work establishes a scalable, practical pathway for next-generation flexible wearable electronics, demonstrating how hierarchical modular design can achieve multifunctional integration without performance compromise. The system's adaptability to complex environments positions it for applications in personal health monitoring, extreme environment protection, and reliable human-machine interaction.

Stay tuned for more innovations from this collaborative team at Beihang University!