Novel nanocapsules with Co-TiC twin cores and regulable graphitic shells for superior electromagnetic wave absorption

The synthesis of nanometer materials with unique structures and compositions has proven successful towards the attenuation of electromagnetic (EM) waves. However, it is still a challenge to form special nanostructures by integrating magnetic/dielectric loss materials into one particle due to the difficulties in coupling the heterogeneous components. Herein, we present the synthesis of novel nanocapsules (NCs) with Co-TiC twin cores encapsulated inside graphitic shells using an arc-discharge plasma method. The thickness of the graphitic shell could be controlled by quantitatively tuning the carbon source concentration. The optimal reflection loss (RL) values of the prepared NCs was -66.59 dB at 8.76 GHz with a low thickness of 2.56 mm. The bandwidth of RL ≤ -10 dB was up to 14.4 GHz, which almost covered the entire frequency band, namely, the S to Ku band (3.6 GHz to 18 GHz). This superior EM wave absorption was ascribed to the specific double-core shell nanostructures and effective impedance matching between the magnetic loss and dielectric loss originating from the combination of the magnetic Co and dielectric TiC/C.