A recent breakthrough in biotechnology promises to change the landscape of plant genetic engineering.

With the continuous improvement of the performance demand for high-temperature hot-end components of major equipment such as aero engines, gas turbines, rocket engines and hypersonic vehicles, the development of high-temperature-resistant, low-conductivity and high-oxygen-barrier coatings has become a research focus in the field of thermal barrier coatings. Currently, the main commercial thermal barrier coating material, yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide (YSZ), has high thermal conductivity and high oxygen ionic conductivity, and in order to improve the thermal insulation and oxygen barrier performance of the thermal barrier coatings, there is an urgent need to develop a thermal barrier-oxygen barrier integrated coating material with both ultra-low thermal conductivity and oxygen ionic conductivity. 8-component rare-earth tantalite (8RE_1/8)TaO₄ has ultra-low thermal conductivity, oxygen ionic conductivity and excellent mechanical properties, and is expected to be a candidate for a new generation of thermal barrier coating materials.

High-entropy fluorite oxides (HEFOs) show significant potential for thermal protection applications due to their advantageous combination of low thermal conductivity and high Yong’s modulus. At present, the researches on HEFOs are still in the initial stage, mainly focusing on the synthesis of new components, structural analysis and performance characterization. Therefore, the factors influencing its formation have not been well studied, and a systematic method for compositional design has not yet been established, which inhibits the research and application of HEFOs.

Dielectric capacitors as a physical power are critical components in advanced electronics and pulse power systems. However, achieving a high energy efficiency without sacrificing recoverable energy density remains a challenge for most dielectric materials. Taking advantage of aliovalent Sm³⁺ dope Ba_0.12Na_0.3Bi_0.3Sr_0.28TiO₃ (BNBST) relaxor ferroelectric at A-site, in this work, to design defect-induced phase/domain structure to improve polarization switching. A high energy efficiency of 91% together with a recoverable energy density of 2.1 J/cm³ has been achieved in Sm_0.07-BNBST ceramics at a low electric field of 114 kV/cm, exceeding other dielectric materials under the same electric field. This work provides an approach to achieving high-performance dielectrics through aliovalent rare earth doping and builds a close relationship between defect-engineered phase/domain structure and polarization switching for energy storage.