Electromagnetic shielding properties of Cu/rGO composite materials synthesized by electroless plating

With the widespread adoption of high‑power and highly integrated electronic devices, issues related to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and electromagnetic pollution have become increasingly prominent, creating an urgent demand for efficient and stable EMI shielding materials. In this work, copper nanoparticles were deposited onto the surface of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) via an electroless plating process, followed by hydrogen reduction treatment to further enhance the EMI of the composites. This approach takes full advantage of the high electrical conductivity of rGO together with the excellent thermal stability and mechanical strength of copper, enabling a uniform distribution of Cu nanoparticles within the multilayered wrinkled architecture of rGO and thereby constructing an efficient conductive network. Performance evaluations revealed that, in the X‑band frequency range (8.2–12.4 GHz), the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (SE) of Cu/rGO composites first increased and then decreased with increasing CuSO₄ concentration, reaching an average SE value of 83.5 dB (maximum 95.1 dB at 12.4 Ghz) at a CuSO₄ concentration of 4 g/L. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the composite exhibited only 1.3 % weight loss below 800 °C, demonstrating outstanding thermal stability. These results suggest that the as‑prepared Cu/rGO composites combine excellent EMI shielding capability with superior thermal stability, offering significant potential as next‑generation lightweight and high‑performance EMI shielding materials for operation in high‑frequency and high‑temperature environments.