Researchers have uncovered a hidden side of material formation by tracking what happens as specially designed molecules are heated.
Researchers have uncovered hidden stages in the creation of materials that could lead to entirely new technologies for clean energy and advanced batteries. By closely tracking what happens as specially designed molecules are heated, the team identified previously unknown materials, including a new form of a promising solar-energy compound.
The discovery challenges a long-standing approach in chemistry. Scientists typically focus on the starting ingredients and the final material produced during heating. This study instead examined the brief and unstable transitional phases that appear in between, revealing that these overlooked states can possess valuable properties of their own.
Published in Nature Communications, the research suggests that many undiscovered materials may be hiding within these temporary stages of chemical reactions.
Hidden Stages in Material Formation
Dr Sebastian Pike, Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick said: “When materials are made by heating, scientists usually focus on the final product, the ‘B’ that results from ‘A.’ But this study shows that there are many fascinating stages in between ‘A’ and ‘B,’ and these hidden steps, could be just as important.
“We didn’t know exactly what we would find going in, but we were confident there would be something interesting and unknown in the intermediate phases. We were thrilled to discover that some of these could have practical uses, even from the very first experiments.”
The team used specially designed “single-source precursors,” which are molecules that already contain all the elements needed to produce a material. By tracking how these molecules changed during heating, the researchers identified several previously unseen material phases. One of them was a newly discovered kinetically stabilized form of bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) called β-BiVO4.
A New Form of a Clean-Energy Material
BiVO4 is considered an important material for clean-energy technologies because of its “band gap” (the energy it needs to absorb sunlight and drive chemical reactions). Its band gap allows it to efficiently absorb sunlight while still producing enough energy to split water and generate clean hydrogen fuel.
The newly identified β-BiVO4 has a different atomic arrangement than previously known versions of the material. Researchers found that it also has a much larger band gap, causing it to interact with light differently. This property could help scientists fine-tune materials used in solar fuel production, catalysis, and electronic devices.
The findings may also have applications beyond solar energy. Another intermediate material discovered during the experiments showed a high capacity for lithium storage, suggesting possible use in future battery technologies.
Revealing Materials Normally Hidden During Synthesis
Dr. Dominik Kubicki from the School of Chemistry at the University of Birmingham said: “What’s exciting is that these ‘in-between’ materials aren’t just stepping stones — they can have useful properties in their own right. By understanding and controlling how they form, we can start to design better materials for batteries, catalysis, and solar energy.”
To detect these normally hidden intermediate states, the researchers combined several advanced techniques, including solid-state NMR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and pair distribution function analysis.
The team also discovered that the choice of precursor, along with the way it decomposes during heating, can strongly influence how materials form. This approach allowed the researchers to create structures that are difficult to produce with standard heating techniques.
Dr. Pike concluded: “We only studied a few precursors here, but this work points to a broader opportunity in materials science. By carefully controlling temperature, precursor chemistry, and reaction pathways, there may be many more “hidden” but extremely useful materials to be found.”
Reference: “Amorphous intermediates and discovery of a kinetic polymorph of BiVO4 from heating V+Bi+Zn single-source precursors” by Alexandria E. Hands, Thomas J. Barnes, Andrea Scarperi, Benjamin M. Gallant, Emanuele Vismara, Julia Wiktor, Stephen E. Brown, David Walker, Ashok S. Menon, Javier Castells-Gil, Dominik J. Kubicki and Sebastian D. Pike, 30 April 2026, Nature Communications.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-71702-7
Funding: Royal Society
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