Abstract

Lightweight and high-efficiency microwave attenuation are two major challenges in the exploration of carbon-based absorbers, which can be achieved simultaneously by manipulating their chemical composition, microstructure, or impedance matching. In this work, core–shell CoNi@graphitic carbon decorated on B,N-codoped hollow carbon polyhedrons has been constructed by a facile pyrolysis process using metal–organic frameworks as precursors. The B,N-codoped hollow carbon polyhedrons, originated from the calcination of Co-Ni-ZIF-67, are composed of carbon nanocages and BN domains, and CoNi alloy is encapsulated by graphitic carbon layers. With a filling loading of 30 wt %, the absorber exhibits a maximum RL of −62.8 dB at 7.2 GHz with 3 mm and the effective absorption bandwidth below −10 dB remarkably reaches as strong as 8 GHz when the thickness is only 2 mm. The outstanding microwave absorption performance stems from the hollow carbon polyhedrons and carbon nanocages with interior cavities, the synergistic coupling effect between the abundant B–C–N heteroatoms, the strong dipolar/interfacial polarizations, the multiple scatterings, and the improved impedance matching. This study demonstrates that the codoped strategy provides a new way for the rational design of carbon-based absorbers with lightweight and superior microwave attenuation.