Synergistic Integration of Quantum Materials with Smart Electrolytes for Next-Generation Multifunctional Supercapacitors: Advances, Challenges, and Future Prospects

Rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and growing global demand for sustainable energy solutions have accelerated the integration of intelligent functionalities into electrochemical energy storage devices, notably supercapacitors (SCs). Quantum materials (QMs), including quantum dots (QDs), MXenes, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), combined with smart electrolytes, have emerged as critical components for achieving next-generation flexible, wearable, and intelligent SCs. Smart electrolytes, characterized by stimulus-responsiveness, self-healing, and multifunctionality, substantially enhance operational stability, electrochemical performance, and responsiveness. This review critically evaluates recent advancements in coupling QMs with smart electrolytes, emphasizing innovative design strategies, such as morphological engineering, interface tailoring, and surface functionalization. Synergistic interactions at QM-electrolyte interfaces are analyzed, highlighting enhancements in capacitance, energy density, and intelligent functionalities like electrochromism and shape memory, surpassing conventional SC capabilities. Computational modeling, particularly density functional theory, is discussed to elucidate quantum capacitance mechanisms and interfacial charge dynamics, optimizing device performance. This novel integration of QMs with smart electrolytes, previously unexplored comprehensively in existing literature, addresses current research challenges and identifies future research directions, emphasizing scalable synthesis, multifunctional materials development, and extensive mechanistic investigations to bridge laboratory innovations and practical technological applications.