Fig. 2

Characterization of the materials used in the study i.e.: Representative SEM images obtained for a Ti₂AlN starting MAX phase, b Ti₂N MXene after HF etching, and c 2D sheets of Ti₂NT_x MXene after delamination; d Cross-sectional HREM image, e FFT image together with related f IFFT extraction of multilayered structure obtained for 2D sheets of Ti₂NT_x MXene; g The intensity pattern revealing a period related to d-spacing of 0.97 nm; h SADP electron diffraction with indication of the characteristic rings for 2D Ti-N layers; i Comparison of the X-ray diffraction patterns obtained for: Ti₂AlN MAX phase and resulting Ti₂NT_x MXene; j EDX analysis, k UV–VIS spectrum accompanied by Tyndall test, as well as l FTIR spectrum of the Ti₂NT_x MXene after delamination