Two-dimensional nanomaterials only a few atoms thick are being explored for a range of critical applications in biomedicine, electronics, nanodevices, energy storage and other areas, especially to enhance performance in extreme environments and ultra-demanding conditions.

But maintaining the order and stability that is vital for more widespread and predictably reliable nanomaterial applications is finicky; matter can exhibit unusual physical and chemical behavior at the nanoscale. That same quirky behavior, when understood and corralled, can provide many benefits through the ability to tailor material structure at extremely small scales to achieve customizable properties and performance capabilities.

Babak Anasori is the Reilly Rising Star Associate Professor of Materials and Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University. His research group studies the family of 2D materials known as MXenes (pronounced "max-eens"), which were discovered in 2011 and have since become the largest known family of 2D nanomaterials.