Electrocatalysis is becoming more and more important in energy conversion and storage due to rising energy demands, increasing carbon dioxide emissions, and impending climate change. The design and synthesis of high-performance electrocatalysts are the spotlights of electrocatalysis. Among many design methodologies reported, strain engineering has gained growing attention because it can change the atomic arrangement and lattice structure of electrocatalysts. However, strain engineering remains to be problematic in regulating the properties of electrocatalysts. This review discusses the strain effect tactics to regulate metal and non-metal electrocatalysts, including three sections focusing on strain categorization, strain regulation mechanism, and applications in electrocatalysis, respectively. Finally, the current challenges and an outlook of strain engineering are discussed.

Recent years have witnessed the fabrication of various non-covalent interaction-based molecular electronic devices. In the non-covalent interaction-based molecular devices, the strength of the interfacial coupling between molecule and electrode is weakened compared to that of the covalent interaction-based molecular devices, which provides wide applications in fabricating versatile molecular devices. In this review, we start with the methods capable of fabricating graphene-based nanogaps, and the following routes to construct non-covalent interaction-based molecular junctions with graphene electrodes. Then we give an introduction to the reported non-covalent interaction-based molecular devices with graphene electrodes equipped with different electrical functions. Moreover, we summarize the recent progress in the design and fabrication of new-type molecular devices based on graphene and graphene-like two-dimensional (2D) materials. The review ends with a prospect on the challenges and opportunities of non-covalent interaction-based molecular electronics in the near future.