Spanish researchers mark successful national collaboration with a special-issue publication in the journal 'Advanced Materials'
14.09.2026
- The ‘Advanced Materials Programme’ is a strategic initiative uniting seven Spanish autonomous regions.
- Researchers at IMDEA Nanociencia contribute 4 breakthrough studies to the special issue ‘Advanced Materials in Spain’.
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Madrid, 14th September, 2026. The ‘Advanced Materials in Spain’ special issue marks the successful conclusion of a major national collaboration among several Spanish research teams, including IMDEA Nanociencia groups. Researchers Nazario Martín, Francisco Guinea, Manuela Garnica, Emilio M. Pérez, José Sánchez Costa and David Écija have contributed with their papers on graphene and other bidimensional (2D) materials. The issue has been published in the journal Advanced Materials with Maria Jesús Vicent and Eugenio Coronado Miralles as guest editors.
This special issue was born out of the ‘Advanced Materials Programme’, a strategic initiative uniting seven Spanish autonomous regions: Aragón, Cataluña, Castilla-León, Comunidad Valenciana, Comunidad de Madrid, País Vasco, and Castilla-La Mancha. The programme, coordinated in the Comunidad de Madrid by Nazario Martín, fosters deep research synergies, enabling regional centers of excellence to pool expertise, infrastructure, and innovation capacity in advanced materials.
Advanced Materials at IMDEA Nanociencia
Manuela Garnica and Miguel Ángel Valbuena at IMDEA Nanociencia sign an article of the ‘Advanced Materials in Spain’ special issue, exploring magnetic interactions on the surface of topological insulators. Their work demonstrates how submonolayer deposition of erbium (Er) atoms on Bi₂Te₃, a prototypical topological insulator, leads to out-of-plane magnetic anisotropy and breaking of time-reversal symmetry. Using a combination of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), first-principles calculations, core-level photoemission (XPS), angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES), X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD), and quasiparticle interference (QPI) mapping, they reveal a Dirac gap opening, warping of the Fermi surface (from snowflake to star-of-David geometry), and modified scattering patterns. This atomic-scale control over topological electronic states is a major step toward engineering exotic quantum phases such as the quantum anomalous Hall effect.
Nazario Martín and his group contribute with an article reporting a major advance in the efficiency and durability of perovskite solar cells. Although perovskites can match the efficiency of traditional silicon at much lower cost, their long-term stability has held back commercial use. Researchers developed a new family of materials called spiro-phenothiazines to improve how electric charges move inside the solar cell. Among them, the fluorene derivative delivered exceptional results: solar cells using this material reached an impressive 25.8% efficiency (25.2% certified), close to the world record. The team also produced a larger 25 cm² mini-module with 22.1% efficiency, a remarkable achievement for scaled-up devices. These cells showed outstanding durability, withstanding over 1,100 hours of light exposure and retaining 95% efficiency after 3,600 hours. This breakthrough brings perovskite solar panels significantly closer to real-world commercial use.
The contribution of David Écija and his group to the special issue ‘Advanced Materials in Spain’ relates to the selective synthesis and transformation of 2D covalent organic frameworks by thermal stimuli. Researchers explored how to build and transform these one-atom-thick materials directly on surfaces, a process that has remained extremely challenging until now. Using a specially designed molecular precursor, they demonstrated a step-by-step method to guide the material’s chemical evolution with heat. First, the molecules link together into 1D chains that self-assemble into an ordered 2D pattern. With further heating, these structures convert into a porous organo-metallic network, and at even higher temperatures, into a fully formed 2D COF. Additional thermal treatment transforms its internal chemical bridges into new ring-like structures with unique electronic properties. This controlled, sequential transformation opens up exciting possibilities for designing tailor-made 2D materials with customizable functions for future technologies.
Francisco Guinea and José Silva sign an article that explores the nematic and partially polarized phases in rhombohedral graphene with varying number of layers. Rhombohedral multilayer graphene has recently emerged as a versatile platform for exploring strong electronic correlations and unconventional quantum phases. In their study, researchers have studied the phase diagram for a varying number of layers, finding that broken-isospin-symmetry phases driven by electron interactions are ubiquitous to the romboedral graphene family. The transition from a 2D system to bulk is not trivial, finding correlated phases even for more than 20 layers of stacked graphene. Also, they explored the effect of the substrate, that leads to a rich phase diagram. This theoretical study offers new insights into the role of correlations and symmetry breaking in graphitic systems.
A cooperation among 7 autonomous regions in Spain
The broader national undertaking was made possible through funding from the Plan de Recuperación, Transformación y Resiliencia, under the NextGenerationEU framework, via the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (MICIU). The Advanced Materials Programme, co-governed with the 7 participating autonomous communities, has mobilized over €10.5 million to support the Madrid chapter via the project Bidimensional Disruptive Materials (MAD2D-CM), coordinated by Prof. Nazario Martín (Universidad Complutense de Madrid) and with participation of IMDEA Nanociencia, IMDEA Materiales, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.
The key objectives of the project included designing and scaling materials such as graphene and other 2D systems, developing stimuli-responsive and smart materials, and creating devices for the storage of energy, environmental sensing, and communication.
Over the course of the programme, participants have generated more than 750 scientific publications and secured 16 patents, demonstrating both fundamental advances and strong innovation potential. The program has also helped establish AMatS, an annual conference that now serves as a hub for Spain’s materials-science community, with its next edition happening on the 24-25th November 2025.
The successful completion of this programme establishes a blueprint for future large-scale, regionally integrated research initiatives. The Advanced Materials special issue stands as a testament to the collective talent and ambition nurtured by the ‘Advanced Materials Programme’.
References
Beatriz Muñiz Cano, Fabián Calleja, Ji Dai, Massimo Tallarida, Vera Marinova, Alessandro Barla, Marc G. Cuxart, Pierluigi Gargiani, Gonzalo N. Molina, José Angel Silva-Guillén, Adriana I. Figueroa, Kevin García-Díez, Sergio O. Valenzuela, Aitor Mugarza, Amadeo L. Vázquez de Parga, Rodolfo Miranda, Francisco Guinea, Manuela Garnica, and Miguel A. Valbuena. “Microscopic Insights into Magnetic Warping and Time-Reversal Symmetry Breaking in Topological Surface States of Rare-Earth-Doped Bi2Te3.” Adv. Mater. 38, no. 51 (2026): e10877. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202510877
Link to IMDEA Nanociencia Repository: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12614/4211
Javier Urieta-Mora, Seung Ju Choi, Jaeki Jeong, Silvia Orecchio, Inés García-Benito, Manuel Pérez-Escribano, Joaquín Calbo, Likai Zheng, Minseop Byun, Seyeong Song, Gi-Hwan Kim, Shaik M. Zakeeruddin, Seog-Young Yoon, Yimhyun Jo, Agustín Molina-Ontoria, Enrique Ortí, Nazario Martín, and Michael Grätzel. “Spiro-Phenothiazine Hole-Transporting Materials: Unlocking Stability and Scalability in Perovskite Solar Cells.” Adv. Mater. 38, no. 51 (2026): e05475. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202505475
Link to IMDEA Nanociencia Repository: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12614/4064
Ana Barragán, Elena Pérez-Elvira, Diego J. Vicent, Marco Lozano, Diego Soler-Polo, Koen Lauwaet, José M. Gallego, Rodolfo Miranda, José I. Urgel, Pavel Jelínek, Nazario Martín, and David Écija. “Stepwise On-Surface Synthesis and Transformations of Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks by Controlled Thermal Stimuli.” Adv. Mater. 38, no. 51 (2026): 2506942. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202506942
Enlace al Repositorio de IMDEA Nanociencia: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12614/4054
Guillermo Parra-Martínez, Alejandro Jimeno-Pozo, Jose Angel Silva-Guillén, Francisco Guinea. "Nematic and partially polarized phases in rhombohedral graphene with varying number of layers: An extensive Hartree-Fock Study". Adv. Mater. 38, no. 51 (2026): e14008. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202514008
Link to IMDEA Nanociencia Repository: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12614/4208
Contact:
Prof. Nazario Martín
Nanocarbons and Organic Photovoltaics Group
https://nanociencia.imdea.org/nanocarbons-and-organic-photovoltaics/group-home
Dr. Manuela Garnica
Nanoscale Imaging of 2D Materials Group
https://nanociencia.imdea.org/nanoscale-imaging-of-2d-materials/group-home
IMDEA Nanociencia Dissemination and Communication Office
divulgacion.nanociencia [at]imdea.org
Source: IMDEA Nanociencia.
IMDEA Nanociencia Institute is a young interdisciplinary research Centre in Madrid (Spain) dedicated to the exploration of nanoscience and the development of applications of nanotechnology in connection with innovative industries.
Related information: https://www.materialesavanzados.es/index_es.php