Leaf-like Fe/C composite assembled by iron veins interpenetrated into amorphous carbon lamina for high-performance microwave absorption

Two-dimensional microwave-absorbing materials (MAMs) with abundant preferable interfaces are highly desirable for high-performance microwave absorption. Herein, a leaf-like Fe/C structure, consisting of iron veins interpenetrated in amorphous carbon lamina, was fabricated by reducing a petal-like iron alkoxide in an H 2 /Ar atmosphere. The synthesized leaf-like Fe/C composites dissipate microwaves in an effectively similar process green to leaves absorbing sunlight. First, the unique leaf-like structure enables microwaves to pass into the composites because the 2D amorphous carbon, with its high BET surface area, provide adequate access for microwaves. Then, the incident microwave is attenuated by the distinctly improved dielectric loss caused by enhanced interface polarization and an effective magnetic loss from the natural resonance of iron. Therefore, the leaf- like Fe/C composite shows microwave absorption with a maximum reflection loss of − 59.7 dB, whose effective bandwidth (reflection loss ≤  − 10 dB) covers the whole Ku band and X band with thicknesses of only 1.5 mm and 2.0 mm, respectively.