{
  "abstract": "Designing catalysts that maximize both atomic efficiency and catalytic activity remains a central challenge in heterogeneous catalysis. While single-atom catalysts maximize noble metal utilization, their isolated structure limits the adsorption configurations of adsorbates, thereby diminishing their catalytic efficiency. We present a versatile platform based on atom-layer neighbors, where the proximity of Ru ensembles diversifies adsorption configurations while simultaneously enhancing adsorbate binding through ligand effects. By leveraging molecular interactions and strong metal-support interactions, we thermodynamically stabilize atomically thin structures comprising only a few Ru atoms, allowing the synthesis of size-tuned Ru atom-layer neighbors on WCx supports. The optimized *H binding on size-tuned Ru ensembles, combined with *OH enrichment on WCx supports, leads to competitive activity per unit noble metal cost in anion-exchange membrane water electrolyzers. Notably, our catalyst achieves the DOE 2026 performance target for PEMWE even at a lower temperature of 60 °C, with a Ru loading of 0.100 mg cm⁻², below the DOE's ultimate noble metal loading threshold. This atom-layer neighbor platform offers a general strategy for enhancing catalyst efficiency while maintaining high noble metal utilization.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Korea.",
    "Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Korea.",
    "Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA.",
    "Hydrogen Energy Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), Daejeon, Korea.",
    "Department of Energy Engineering, Korea Institute of Energy Technology (KENTECH), Naju, Korea.",
    "School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Ulsan, Korea.",
    "Pohang Accelerator Laboratory, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, Korea.",
    "Center for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Seoul, Korea.",
    "Research Center for Materials Analysis, Korea Basic Science Institute (KBSI), Daejeon, Korea. junnymoon@kbsi.re.kr.",
    "Division of Chemical, Biomolecular and Energy Engineering, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea. ljyljy78@konkuk.ac.kr.",
    "Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Korea. linus16@kaist.ac.kr.",
    "Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, Korea. jwlee1@kaist.ac.kr."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 19,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Seongbeen Kim",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1142-2789"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hyunwoo Jun"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Jihye Park"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Sungjun Kim",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3005-6094"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Sunghyun Noh"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Seung-Jae Shin",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5530-4453"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Bupmo Kim"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6
      ],
      "name": "Kug-Seung Lee",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7570-8404"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jiwon Kim"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jaeho Byeon",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8969-3258"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Minkyeong Ban"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Daeeun Choi"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hoijun Kim",
      "orcid": "0009-0006-5328-7684"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "Jong Hyun Jang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Wooyul Kim",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8130-5441"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Joonhee Moon",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9724-5498"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Jang Yong Lee",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1996-1832"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10
      ],
      "name": "Hyungjun Kim",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8261-9381"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        11
      ],
      "name": "Jinwoo Lee",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6347-0446"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1x124v90mwcwn.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41467-026-78037-3",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13687079",
  "id": "1x124v90mwcwn",
  "issns": [
    "2041-1723"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42907481",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2105|Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213974524",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13687079?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13687079",
  "pmid": "42907481",
  "published": "2026-09-22",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1x124v90mwcwn.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:57Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42907481",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42907481"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2105|Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion",
      "subfield": "electrochemistry-energy"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Stabilizing ruthenium atom layer neighbors through molecular and metal support interactions for water electrolyzers.",
  "title_text": "Stabilizing ruthenium atom layer neighbors through molecular and metal support interactions for water electrolyzers.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:57Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1x124v90mwcwn",
  "venue": "Nature communications",
  "versions": []
}