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Hao et al. Soft Sci. 2025, 5, 39 https://dx.doi.org/10.20517/ss.2025.48 Page 3 of 25

traditional MAMs, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene, often experience spontaneous
aggregation into larger aggregates due to various physical or chemical processes when dispersed in a
[30]
matrix . This uncontrollable aggregation process results in unstable electromagnetic properties, which
ultimately diminishes the reliability of these absorbing materials in practical engineering applications. The
absorbers of MSMCs are fabricated into sub-wavelength functional units. The effective dispersion of these
functional units facilitates the attainment of stable electromagnetic parameters, thereby enhancing the
reliability of the absorbing materials in engineering applications.

Furthermore, traditional absorbing materials primarily achieve electromagnetic wave absorption at high
temperatures by decreasing the content of absorbents in composite materials and enhancing the
polarization loss capability [31,32] . However, this approach relies on decreasing the loss characteristics of
composite materials to achieve impedance matching at elevated temperatures, making it challenging to
attain significant electromagnetic wave attenuation. Mesoscopic functional units are discretely distributed
within the matrix, allowing charge transfer to occur solely within these functional units. Despite rising
temperatures, the conductivity remains relatively unchanged, resulting in a decoupling of conductivity from
impedance matching and maintaining excellent impedance matching across a wide temperature spectrum.
By converting macroscopic continuous conductive networks into discrete functional units while
maintaining intact internal conductive pathways, MSMCs demonstrate superior capabilities for
electromagnetic wave dissipation. Consequently, MSMCs exhibit a strong loss capability over a broad
temperature range. Secondly, reflection and scattering can prolong the transmission path of electromagnetic
waves, thereby promoting attenuation of electromagnetic waves [33,34] . The contribution of reflection and
scattering to electromagnetic wave loss capability is insufficient in traditional MAMs . Functional units at
[35]
sub-wavelength scales exhibit more pronounced reflection and scattering when interacting with
electromagnetic waves, and manipulation of electromagnetic wave transmission paths can be achieved by
adjusting the scale and arrangement of functional units. The MSMCs establish intricate pathways for
electromagnetic wave propagation that enable multiple reflections and scattering among functional units.
These interactions effectively extend the path length within the material, resulting in increased energy
dissipation during propagation and enhanced microwave absorption performance.

Although MSMCs demonstrate significant application potential, the substantial challenges, particularly
fabrication process intricacies, uncertainties in establishing quantitative structure-property relationships,
and difficulties associated with large-scale production, have considerably hindered their practical
realization. With ongoing advancements in synthesis techniques and a deeper understanding of the
interaction mechanisms between electromagnetic waves and matter, it is anticipated that the
electromagnetic parameters of these materials can be further optimized. This optimization would facilitate
the development of MSMCs characterized by exceptional overall performance, including broad frequency
absorption, strong loss characteristics, lightweight architecture, and high temperature resistance.
Consequently, this progress will provide essential technical support for electromagnetic compatibility
systems, invisibility technology, and electromagnetic pollution control.

This review systematically summarizes the recent advancements in MSMCs, with a focus on construction
strategies and mechanisms for enhancing microwave absorption performance. Firstly, we conduct an in-
depth analysis of the structural design strategies employed in MSMCs, meticulously examining the
correlation between material composition, interfacial characteristics and wave-absorbing performance.
Subsequently, we elucidate the mechanisms underlying performance enhancement in MSMCs. This
encompasses the controlled dispersion of functional units designed to achieve synergistic impedance
matching across a wide range of temperatures, along with innovative attenuation mechanisms enabled by