Researchers have developed a composite film that combines electromagnetic interference shielding, infrared stealth, and high mechanical strength using carbon nanotube fibers and MXene. It is designed to protect military electronics devices but could also have applications in 5G/6G and wearable devices.
Ordinary metallic shielding materials are stiff, heavy, and at risk of corrosion, while carbon nanotube fibers are lightweight, mechanically strong, and have good EMI shielding. That fiber form makes carbon nanotubes difficult to assemble into larger projects. MXene, on the other hand, has low infrared emissivity, making it good for stealth applications, but it has poor mechanical strength and low stability.
The developers say the new hybrid composite film integrates the advantages of the two materials by first treating the CNT fibers with amine groups to promote bonding with MXene, which were then continuously passed through a MXene solution and wound side by side to form a film. The resulting hybrid CNT fibers function as the structural “bricks,” while MXene fills the spaces between them and acts as the electrically conductive “mortar.”
The mortar suppresses slippage between the fibers, which increases the mechanical strength of the film, while creating continuous electrical pathways that improve electromagnetic shielding. The MXene coating also reduces infrared emission, lowering the material’s visibility to infrared detection systems such as thermal imaging cameras. All that ends up being only 17.5 micrometers thick, one-fifth the thickness of a human hair, with an EMI shielding effectiveness of approximately 90 decibels (dB), blocking more than 99.9999999% of incident electromagnetic waves in communication and radar frequency bands.
The 1.02 gigapascal tensile strength is comparable to high-strength steel and works under high-temperature, high-humidity conditions.
It's not cost-effective yet but is compatible with a continuous fabrication process, so when it's ready it could easily go into large-area production.
Citation: Minseouk Choi, Kyung Tae Park, Deok Jae Lim, Seok Hyeon Kim, Hyun Seong Yang, Jaehoo Kim, Jinho Jang, Kyunbae Lee, Yeonsu Jung, Hyejin Jang, Jaewoo Kim, Seon Joon Kim & Taehoon Kim, MXene as conductive mortar: Assembly of Ti3C2Tx and carbon nanotube fibers into multifunctional films for EMI shielding and infrared stealth. Adv Compos Hybrid Mater (2026). DOI: 10.1007/s42114-026-02009-w
