Polarization and angle insensitive ultra-broadband mid-infrared perfect absorber

A new polarization and angle insensitive ultra-broadband perfect absorber (UPA) was proposed and demonstrated based on an alumina-chromium-alumina-chromium four-layer structure. The absorption bandwidth reached 3059 nm in the infrared range (from 939 nm to 3998 nm) with a spectral absorptivity greater than 90%. The average absorption was up to 94.0% in a range of 800 nm to 4200 nm. The physical mechanisms and influence of different structural configurations on the absorption performance of the UPA were analyzed in detail. When the oblique incidence angle was up to 60°, the average absorption rates of the TE and TM modes were 87.3% and 85.0%, respectively. The proposed UPA has potential applications in thermo-photovoltaics and infrared detection.     

Solar broadband metamaterial perfect absorber based on dielectric resonant structure of Ge cone array and InAs film

The broadband metamaterial perfect absorber has been extensively studied due to its excellent characteristics and promising application prospect. In this work a solar broadband metamaterial perfect absorber is proposed based on the structure of the germanium (Ge) cone array and the indium arsenide (InAs) dielectric film on the gold (Au) substrate. The results show that the absorption covers the whole ultraviolet-visible and near-infrared range. For the case of A > 99%, the absorption bandwidth reaches up to 1230 nm with a wavelength range varied from 200 nm to 1430 nm. The proposed absorber is able to absorb more than 98.7% of the solar energy in a solar spectrum from 200 nm to 3000 nm. The electromagnetic dipole resonance and the high-order modes of the Ge cone couple strongly to the incident optical field, which introduces a strong coupling with the solar radiation and produces an ultra-broadband absorption. The absorption spectrum can be feasibly manipulated via tuning the structural parameters, and the polarization insensitivity performance is particularly excellent. The proposed absorber can possess wide applications in active photoelectric effects, thermion modulators, and photoelectric detectors.     

Broadband visible light absorber based on ultrathin semiconductor nanostructures

It is desirable to have electromagnetic wave absorbers with ultrathin structural thickness and broader spectral absorption bandwidth with numerous applications in optoelectronics. In this paper, we theoretically propose and numerically demonstrate a novel ultrathin nanostructure absorber composed of semiconductor nanoring array and a uniform gold substrate. The results show that the absorption covers the entire visible light region, achieving an average absorption rate more than 90% in a wavelength range from 300 nm to 740 nm and a nearly perfect absorption from 450 nm to 500 nm, and the polarization insensitivity performance is particularly great. The absorption performance is mainly caused by the electrical resonance and magnetic resonance of semiconductor nanoring array as well as the field coupling effects. Our designed broadband visible light absorber has wide application prospects in the fields of thermal photovoltaics and photodetectors.     

An ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber based on the hybrid materials in the visible region

In this paper, an ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber is successfully designed in the visible region. The structure of the absorber is just obtained by the two-dimensional plane structure which rotate 90° along x-axis. Furthermore, the formation of the structure for the hybrid materials is based on the four U-shaped structure of the metal titanium is embedded in the semiconductor (indium antimonide). The simulated results show that the proposed metamaterial absorber can achieve an ultra-broadband absorption with greater than 90% from 252.2 to 822.3 THz, and the relative absorption bandwidth gets to 106.1%. Finally, the simulated electric field, surface current and power loss density distributions further illustrate the absorption mechanism of the metamaterial absorber. And we believe the metamaterial absorber will have many potential applications in energy harvesting and stealth devices.     

A simple design of ultra-broadband and polarization insensitive terahertz metamaterial absorber

Ultra-broadband metamaterial absorbers have attracted considerable attention due to their great prospect for practical applications. These absorbers are usually stacked by many (no. <20) different shaped or sized subunits in a unit cell, making it quite troublesome to be fabricated. Simple design for ultra-broadband absorber is urgently necessary. Herein, we propose a simple design of ultra-broadband and polarization insensitive terahertz metamaterial absorber based on a double-layered composite structure on a metallic board, and each layer consists of two sets of different sized square metallic plates. Greater than 90 % absorption is obtained across a frequency range of 0.85 THz with the central frequency around 1.60 THz. The relative absorption bandwidth of the device is greatly improved to 53.3 %, which is much larger than previous results. The mechanism of the ultra-broadband absorber is attributed to the overlapping of four closely resonance frequencies. The proposed metamaterial absorber has potential applications in detection, imaging and stealth technology.     

Design of Broadband Metamaterial Absorbers for Permittivity Sensitivity and Solar Cell Application

A broadband and ultra-thin absorber for solar cell application is designed. The absorber consists of three layers,and the difference is that the four split ring resonators made of metal gold are encrusted in the gallium arsenide(GaAs) plane in the top layer. The simulated results show that a perfect absorption in the region from 481.2 to 684.0 THz can be obtained for either transverse electric or magnetic polarization wave due to the coupling effect between the material of GaAs and gold. The metamaterial is ultra-thin, having the total thickness of56 nm, which is less than one-tenth resonance wavelength, and the absorption coefflcients at the three resonance wavelengths are above 90%. Moreover, the effective medium theory, electric field and surface current distributions are adopted to explain the physical mechanism of the absorption, and the permittivity sensing applications are also discussed. As a result, the proposed structure can be used in many areas, such as solar cell, sensors, and integrated photodetectors.     

Broadband visible metamaterial absorber based on a three-dimensional structure

In this paper, a broadband metamaterial absorber is successfully designed by a three-dimensional structure. And the three-dimensional absorber is just obtained by a two-dimensional structure which rotates 90°along x-axis. The simulated results show that the absorption of the three-dimensional metamaterial absorber is much better than the two-dimensional absorber. Moreover, the absorber is polarization-sensitive for the incident electromagnetic waves due to the asymmetry of the structure. Compared with the Y-polarization wave, the proposed absorber can realize broadband absorption with greater than 90% from 355.6 to 737.7 THz for X-polarized wave. Finally, based on the analysis of the electric field and surface current distributions, it can demonstrate that the localized surface plasmons and dipoles resonances will play an important role in the broadband absorption. And we believe that the metamaterial absorber will have many potential applications in emitter and energy harvesting.     

Ultra-broadband and polarization-independent planar absorber based on multilayered graphene

We propose an ultra-broadband and polarization independent planar absorber comprising multilayered graphene. The bandwidth of the proposed absorber is extended by increasing the number of layers of graphene, and it is polarization independent due to its symmetrical unit structure. The full wave simulation results show that an absorber with three graphenebased layers can efficiently harvest an electromagnetic wave with random polarization from 17.9 GHz to 188.7 GHz(i.e.,covering frequency regimes from K to D bands and relative bandwidth of ~ 165%). The physical absorption mechanism of ultra-broadband absorption has been elaborated upon using the destructive interference method and multiple resonances approach in a multilayered medium. The proposed absorber can be used in many applications such as medical treatment,electromagnetic compatibility, and stealth technique.     

Broadband,polarization-insensitive,and wide-angle microwave absorber based on resistive film

A simple design of broadband metamaterial absorber(MA) based on resistive film is numerically presented in this paper.The unit cell of this absorber is composed of crossed rectangular rings-shaped resistive film,dielectric substrate,and continuous metal film.The simulated results indicate that the absorber obtains a 12.82-GHz-wide absorption from about 4.75 GHz to 17.57 GHz with absorptivity over 90% at normal incidence.Distribution of surface power loss density is illustrated to understand the intrinsic absorption mechanism of the structure.The proposed structure can work at wide polarization angles and wide angles of incidence for both transverse electric(TE) and transverse magnetic(TM) waves.Finally,the multi-reflection interference theory is involved to analyze and explain the broadband absorption mechanism at both normal and oblique incidence.Moreover,the polarization-insensitive feature is also investigated by using the interference model.It is seen that the simulated and calculated absorption rates agree fairly well with each other for the absorber.     

Polarization-Independent Broadband Optical Regime Metamaterial Absorber for Solar Harvesting: A Numerical Approach

In this article, a broadband metamaterial (MTM) absorber is proposed that exhibits near-unity absorption in the terahertz regime. The proposed metamaterial absorber was initiated on a quartz (fused) substrate, whereas the resonator and backplane are constructed with tungsten. The resonator is designed with a square ring loaded with a face-to-face E structure at the center. It also consists of diagonally extended arrow-like shapes loaded from the corners and a concave-shaped structure extended from the middle of the square ring. Near-perfect absorption is observed at the frequencies of 465.2 THz, 585.2 THz, 648.8 THz, and 762.8 THz with absorption peaks of 99.8%, 99.9%, 99.92%, and 99.92%, respectively. Moreover, it exhibits broadband absorption properties above 90% absorption with bandwidths 20.4 THz, 80.8 THz, 41.6 THz, and 90 THz, respectively, at these resonance frequencies. Due to its symmetrical structure, it shows polarization-insensitivity behavior up to 90° with maximum absorption greater than 90% both in transverse (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes. It also exhibits insensitivity to changes of incident angle from 0°–45°. Metamaterial properties of the proposed absorber are also analyzed, showing single negative behavior. Absorber property has been examined through surface current and equivalent circuit electric and magnetic field analysis. The effect of the cross-polarization is negligible and is verified through simulation. Due to its large bandwidth, polarization-insensitive behavior, and low PCR, the proposed MTM absorber can be incorporated into photovoltaic devices as a solar-energy harvester.     

极化控制的双波段宽带红外吸收器研究

红外吸收器在红外隐身、辐射制冷、红外探测、传感器等方面有重要的应用前景.一维光栅型吸收器由于其结构简单、易于加工的优势备受关注,然而其不足之处是频带很窄,且只对一种极化有效.本文提出了一种基于简单一维周期结构的双波段宽带吸收器,对横磁波和横电波都有效,且吸波频段随入射波的极化方式而改变.该结构的基本单元由八个梯度排列的子单元构成,每个子单元由两层金属-介质双层膜垂直层叠组成.全波仿真结果表明,在1.68—2μm波段,该结构对横磁波吸收超过90%,而对横电波吸收很小(小于6%);在3.8-3.9μm波段,该结构对横电波吸收超过90%,而对横磁波吸收很小(小于5%).另外,该结构具有宽角度吸收特性,当入射角增大到60°时仍然能够保持较高的吸收率和较宽的吸收频带.     

缺陷组合嵌入VO2薄膜结构的可调太赫兹吸收器

提出一种多缺陷组合嵌入VO2薄膜结构的可调太赫兹吸收器,它由上表面金属图案层、基体和底层金属板三层结构组成,在上表面和基体之间嵌入二氧化钒介质.计算结果表明在f=4.08 THz和f=4.33 THz两频点吸收率分别为99.8%和99.9%.通过改变外界环境温度可控制二氧化钒相变,从而使两个频点吸收率从99.8%变化到1.0%.改变入射角和偏振态,计算结果表明在入射角0°-40°,吸收器在TE和TM两种极化波下吸收率都能在98%以上.该太赫兹波吸收器具有高吸收、动态调谐、极化不敏感等特性,本文所设计的可调太赫兹吸收器在太赫兹波相关领域,例如探测器、开关、动态调制器、隐身技术等方面具有很好的应用前景.     

超薄柔性透射型超构材料吸收器

设计并加工了一种超薄柔性透射型吸收器,总体厚度为0.288 mm,可实现柔性弯曲,容易做到与曲面目标共形.该吸收器由三层结构组成,底层是金属光栅,中间为介质层,表面单元由两条平行放置的尺寸不同的金属线组成.仿真和实验结果表明,对横电波在5和7 GHz的吸收分别达到97.5%和96.0%,对横磁波在3.0—6.5 GHz都能保持90%以上的透射率.两个吸收频点可分别独立调节,增加了设计的灵活性.另外,当入射角增大到60°时,该吸收器的性能基本不受影响,表现出良好的广角特性.     

Infrared Absorber Leveling in Ultra-Wideband by Using Hybrid Plasmonic Structure

In this paper, an effective ultra-broadband absorber in long-wavelength infrared is achieved by a metal-insulator-metasurface (MIM) stacked structure. This absorber exhibits an average absorption of 90% at wavelengths ranging from 8 to 14 µm and a maximum absorption rate of up to 97.1%. It is found that the performance is achieved by three mode combinations. The ultra-broadband leveling absorber is to be polarization-independent due to its geometrical symmetry. The absorption property can be controlled by the parameters of the triangle unit. It has great potential in many applications such as infrared detection and imaging.     

A flexible ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber working on whole K-bands with polarization-insensitive and wide-angle stability

For potential military applications, a flexible metamaterial absorber (MMA) working on whole K-bands with total-thickness of 3.367 mm, ultra-broadband, polarization-insensitive, and wide-angle stability is presented based on frequency-selective surface (FSS). The absorber is composed of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) layer, polyimide (PI) layer, and poly tetra fluoro ethylene (PTFE) layer, with a sandwich structure of PVC-PI-PTFE-metal plate. Periodic conductive patterns play a crucial role in the absorber, and in traditional, it is designed on the upper surface of PI layer to form LC resonance. Different from commonly absorber, all the patterns are located on the lower surface of the PI layer in this work, and hence the impedance matching and absorptivity are improved in this purposed absorber. The flexible absorber with patterns on lower surface of the PI layer is compared with that on upper surface of the PI layer, the difference and the reasons are explained by absorption mechanism based on equivalent circuit model, and surface current density and electric field distribution are used to analyze resonance peaks. Absorptivity is greater than 90% in a frequency range of 10.47 GHz-45.44 GHz with relative bandwidth of 125.1%, covering the whole Ku, K, Ka, and some of X, U bands, especially containing the whole K bands from 12 GHz to 40 GHz. Radar cross section (RCS) is reduced at least 10 dB in 11.48 GHz-43.87 GHz frequency ranges, and absorption remained about 90% when the incident angle changed from 0° to 55°. The purposed absorber is fabricated, measured, and experiment results show good agreement with theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. After bonded on outer surface of different cylinders with diameters of 200 mm and 100 mm, the absorption of MMA is approximately reduced 10% and 20% respectively, which shows good conformal character with surface of various curvatures. Due to the attractive performance on strong absorption in the whole K-bands, flexible and easy conformal, our design exhibits broad potential application in radar stealth and sensors.     

Ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber for infrared transparency window of the atmosphere

The broadband absorber at the wavelength range from 8 to 13 μm has attracted much attention because this range is exactly the infrared transparency window of the atmosphere. In this Letter, we propose a new structure of ultra-broadband absorber, which is composed of a periodic array of single-sized titanium (Ti) patches and a sandwich (Ti/SiO₂/Ti) plane. In the infrared transparency window of the atmosphere, the structure proposed can achieve nearly perfect absorption with the maximal absorptivity up to 99% for the wavelength range from 9.77 to 10.69 μm, and a high average absorptivity of 96.7% from 8 to 13 μm. The strongly localized electric field, at the interface of the top thin Ti film and the dielectric spacer of sandwich plane, leads to the ultra-broadband high absorption. In addition, this structure demonstrates the insensitivity of polarization and oblique angle. This metamaterial absorber with high performances in both bandwidth and absorptivity shows a promising prospect in applications such as thermal emitters, thermal coolers, and infrared sensors.     

一种极化不敏感和双面吸波的手性超材料吸波体

基于手性结构设计了一种极化不敏感和双面吸波的超材料吸波体.该吸波体的结构单元由手性结构和介质基板组成.仿真的电磁波正、反向入射时超材料吸波体的吸收率表明:该吸波结构的正、反面是互易的,具有双面吸波特性.仿真的不同极化角下超材料吸波体的吸收率表明:该超材料吸波体具有极化不敏感特性.仿真的不同入射角下超材料吸波体的吸收率表明:该超材料吸波体的入射角较窄.仿真的吸波体单元的表面电流和磁能密度分布表明:电、磁场之间存在交叉耦合,吸波与手性有关.仿真的不同损耗情况下超材料吸波体的吸收率表明:基板的介质损耗在吸波过程中起主导作用,金属的电阻热可以忽略不计.该超材料吸波体可能在要求双面吸波的领域中具有潜在的应用. 关键词： 极化不敏感 双面吸波 手性结构 超材料吸波体     

基于超材料的偏振不敏感太赫兹宽带吸波体设计

本文设计了一种基于超材料的偏振不敏感太赫兹宽带吸波体.吸波体包含两层金属和一层中间介质,表面金属层每一个周期单元由五种尺寸接近的金属块按照相邻不同的规律排列成5×5的方形阵列.各种尺寸金属块分别产生单峰谐振吸收,五个谐振吸收峰相互靠近从而产生宽带吸收.通过研究吸波体表面电流和电场z分量分布情况可知,入射太赫兹能量的吸收主要是由y方向上电场引起的电偶极子振荡和z方向上磁场引起的磁极化产生,而且金属层的欧姆损耗起主要作用.仿真结果表明,吸波体吸收率在80%以上的带宽约为1.2 THz,最高吸收率可达98.7%,半峰全宽(FWHM)为1.6 THz,该宽带吸波体的厚度约为中心波长的二十分之一,对偏振方向不敏感,且能实现大角度吸收,在太赫兹频段的电磁隐身、测辐射热探测器以及宽带通信等领域有潜在的应用价值.     

Plasmonic fractals: ultrabroadband light trapping in thin film solar cells by a Sierpinski nanocarpet

Plasmonic Sierpinski nanocarpet as back structure for a thin film Si solar cell is investigated. We demonstrate that ultra-broadband light trapping can be obtained by placing square metallic nanoridges with Sierpinski pattern on the back contact of the thin film solar cell. The multiple-scale plasmonic fractal structure allows excitation of localized surface plasmons and surface plasmon polaritons in multiple wavelengths leading to obvious absorption enhancements in a wide frequency range. Full wave simulations show that 109 % increase of the short-circuit current density for a 200 nm thick solar cell, is achievable by the proposed fractal back structure. The amount of light absorbed in the active region of this cell is more than that of a flat cell with semiconductor thickness of 1,000 nm.     

A design of ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber

In this paper, an ultra-broadband, wide-angle polarization-insensitive metamaterial absorber is designed at microwave frequencies. The absorber consists of a periodic array of metallic strips with the lumped resistances fabricated on a dielectric substrate with a ground plane. The proposed absorber is single-layered and symmetric, thus leading to very thin and polarization-insensitive characteristics. According to the surface current distributions, the proposed absorber can operate three resonant modes including two dipole resonances and an LC resonance. By adjusting the geometry and lumped resistances of the structure, three resonant modes can be effectively connected together, and thus an ultra-broadband response can be realized. The simulated and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed absorber produces a good absorption above 80% at normal incidence and above 60% at oblique incidence with the incident angle smaller than 45° between 6 and 16.2 GHz.