Metal Oxide Nanomaterials for Next-Generation Optoelectronic, Energy, and Sensing Technologies

Metal oxide nanomaterials offer a versatile platform for addressing major challenges in next-generation electronics, photonics, energy, and sensing. Their tunable electronic and optical properties, high surface-to-volume ratios, chemical stability, low-cost processing potential, and compatibility with a wide range of device architectures make them attractive for applications spanning fundamental materials science and emerging technologies.

This Research Topic will explore recent advances in the design, synthesis, characterization, integration, and application of metal oxide nanomaterials and related hybrid systems. We welcome contributions that connect nanoscale composition, morphology, interfaces, defects, and structure–property relationships with practical device performance, reliability, sustainability, and scale-up.

The scope would include, but not be limited to:
• Metal oxide nanoparticles, nanowires, nanorods, nanosheets, nanofilms, quantum dots, porous structures, and other low-dimensional architectures
• Defect, doping, strain, surface, and interface engineering
• Heterostructures, composites, and hybrid systems involving organic, carbon-based, two-dimensional, or other complementary materials
• Photodetectors, light-emitting devices, photovoltaics, photocatalytic and energy-harvesting systems
• Chemical, environmental, biomedical, wearable, and Internet-of-Things sensing platforms
• Flexible, transparent, printed, and low-power electronics
• Neuromorphic, memristive, and other emerging computing devices based on metal oxide nanomaterials
• Stability, degradation, environmental impact, circularity, and sustainable materials processing
• Scalable synthesis, manufacturing, device integration, and technology translation
• Multiscale modelling, machine learning, and data-driven approaches for materials and device optimization

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Mini Review
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Mini Review
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review

Keywords: metal oxide nanostructures, optoelectronics, bandgap engineering, photodetectors, light-emitting diodes, sensors, energy harvesting, defect engineering, heterostructures, device integration

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.