Recent Advances in Polymer and Polymer Composites for Electromagnetic Interference Shielding: Review and Future Prospects

Interference and chaos among different electromagnetic signals become the prime challenge of the current era which relies on wireless communication. Effective shielding of electromagnetic interference (EMI) waves with advanced materials thus emerges as major research field to prevent cross-talking among electronic devices. This article reviews the current research status of polymer-based EMI shielding materials with a particular focus on a high-performance hybrid with diverse nanomaterials filler. Compatibility and synergist of polymer host with filler materials have been illuminated in this article. Developments of polymer-based EMI hybrid with carboneous, metallic, magnetic and nano/micro materials have been summarized in detail. Emphasis has been given to discuss the role of nano/micro materials size and shape, their electronic, mechanical, chemical properties in tuning the EMI shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) of polymer hybrid. A specific correlation of surface chemical modification/doping of filler materials with EMI SE of their polymer hybrid have been summarized. In the last section, future research direction has been proposed to overcome the existing technological bottlenecks to realize most advanced EMI shielding materials for future use.