Highly Symmetric Planar Metamaterial Absorbers Based on Annular and Circular Patches

We present the simple designs of metamaterial absorbers which are composed of a periodic array of copper annular （or circular） patches, FR4 substrate, and copper film. With appropriate geometrical parameters, these metamaterials can provide the electric and magnetic resonances overlapping in the given frequency range, and the experiments demonstrate the absorptivities of 97.6% and 96.7% with only a single layer of the metamaterial absorber. The surface currents and field distributions of these metamaterials are discussed to look straight into the resonance mechanism. Furthermore, our numerical simulations confirm that these metamaterial absorbers could be operated at wide angles of incidence. The simple and highly symmetric structures of the metamaterial absorbers proposed would greatly accelerate the practical applications in optics and electromagnetics.     

Multiband Metamaterial Absorber at Terahertz Frequencies

We propose a multi-band metamaterial absorber operating at terahertz frequencies. The design, characteriza- tion, and theoretical calculation of the high performance metamaterial absorber are reported. The multi-band metamaterial absorber consists of two metallic layers separated by a dielectric spacer. Theoretical and simulated results show that the metamaterial absorber has four distinct absorption points at frequenc/es 0.57 THz, 1.03 THz, 1.44 THz and 1.89 THz, with the absorption rates of 99.9%, 90.3%, 83.0%, 96.1%, respectively. Two single band metamaterial absorbers and a dual band metamaterial absorber on the top layer are designed. Some multi-band absorbers can be designed by virtue of combining some single band absorbers. The multiple-reflection theory is used to explain the absorption mechanism of our investigated structures.     

Three-dimensional simulation of Ka-band relativistic Cherenkov source with metal photonic-band-gap structures

This paper presents a three-dimensional particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation of a Ka-band relativistic Cherenkov source with a slow wave structure (SWS) consisting of metal photonic band gap (PBG) structures. In the simulation, a perfect match layer boundary is employed to absorb passing band modes supported by the PBG lattice with an artificial metal boundary. The simulated axial field distributions in the cross section and surface of the SWS demonstrate that the device operates in the vicinity of the π point of a TM01-like mode. The Fourier transformation spectra of the axial fields as functions of time and space show that only a single frequency appears at 36.27 GHz, which is in good agreement with that of the intersection of the dispersion curve with the slow space charge wave generated on the beam. The simulation results demonstrate that the SWS has good mode selectivity.     

Low Frequency Ultra-Thin Compact Metamaterial Absorber Comprising Split-Ring Resonators

We present a design of a low frequency ultra-thin compact and polarization-insensitive metamaterial absorber （MA）. The designed MA is a two-layer structure, a periodic array of novel split-ring resonators （SRRs）, which are constructed in an FR4 dielectric layer, and another ultra-thin grounded sheet is attached to the bottom. Numerical simulated results show that the proposed MA can realize effective absorption at the frequency 281.9 MHz, and its overall thickness is just only 0.29% of the resonant wavelength, the unit space is only 2.57%, and the absorbanee is kept well for a wide range of incident angles for different polarizations. In addition, the proposed MA is changed into a more compact one when the inter-digital structures are introduced in the SRRs. One convenient experiment is carried out in a rectangular waveguide simulator.     

Experimental study on spectrum and multi-scale nature of wall pressure and velocity in turbulent boundary layer

When using a miniature single sensor boundary layer probe,the time sequences of the stream-wise velocity in the turbulent boundary layer(TBL) are measured by using a hot wire anemometer.Beneath the fully developed TBL,the wall pressure fluctuations are attained by a microphone mechanism with high spatial resolution.Analysis on the statistic and spectrum properties of velocity and wall pressure reveals the relationship between the wall pressure fluctuation and the energy-containing structure in the buffer layer of the TBL.Wavelet transform shows the multi-scale natures of coherent structures contained in both signals of velocity and pressure.The most intermittent wall pressure scale is associated with the coherent structure in the buffer layer.Meanwhile the most energetic scale of velocity fluctuation at y+= 14 provides a specific frequency f9≈ 147 Hz for wall actuating control with Reτ= 996.     

New 4H silicon carbide metal semiconductor field-effect transistor with a buffer layer between the gate and the channel layer

A new 4H silicon carbide metal semiconductor field-effect transistor (4H-SiC MESFET) structure with a buffer layer between the gate and the channel layer is proposed in this paper for high power microwave applications.The physics-based analytical models for calculating the performance of the proposed device are obtained by solving one-and two-dimensional Poisson’s equations.In the models,we take into account not only two regions under the gate but also a third high field region between the gate and the drain which is usually omitted.The direct-current and the alternatingcurrent performances for the proposed 4H-SiC MESFET with a buffer layer of 0.2 μm are calculated.The calculated results are in good agreement with the experimental data.The current is larger than that of the conventional structure.The cutoff frequency (fT) and the maximum oscillation frequency (f max) are 20.4 GHz and 101.6 GHz,respectively,which are higher than 7.8 GHz and 45.3 GHz of the conventional structure.Therefore,the proposed 4H-SiC MESFET structure has better power and microwave performances than the conventional structure.     

Tunable wideband absorber based on resistively loaded lossy high-impedance surface

A lossy high-impedance surface comprised of two layers of resistive frequency selective surfaces is employed to design a tunable electromagnetic absorber. The tunability is realized through changing the composite unit cell by moving the top layer mechanically. To explain the absorbing mechanism, an equivalent circuit model with an interacting coefficient is proposed. Then, simulations and measurements are carried out and agree well with each other. Results show that the complex structure with a thickness less than λ0/4 is able to achieve a wideband absorption in a frequency range from5.90 GHz to 19.73 GHz. Moreover, it is tunable in the operation frequency band.     

A novel structure for a broadband left-handed metamaterial

A low absorptivity broadband negative refractive index metamaterial with a multi-gap split-ring and metallic cross (MSMC) structure is proposed and investigated numerically and experimentally in the microwave frequency range. The effective media parameters were retrieved from the numerical and experimental results, which clearly show that there exists a very wide frequency band where the permittivity and permeability are negative. The influence of the structure parameters on the magnetic response and the cut-off frequency of the negative permittivity are studied in detail. This metamaterial would have potential application in designing broadband microwave devices.     

Anisotropic phononic crystal structure with low-frequency bandgap and heat flux manipulation

This study presents a two-dimensional phononic crystal with heat flux manipulation and wide bandgaps of out-of-plane modes within the low-frequency range. The anisotropic matrix made of spiral-multilayered materials with different thermal conductivities, and the coating layer inserted with metal are designed for heat flux manipulation. Rubber-coated metal cylinders are periodically embedded in the anisotropic matrix to obtain the low-frequency bandgaps of out-of-plane modes. Numerical simulation is carried out to validate the heat and elastic characteristics of the spiral-multilayered anisotropic structure and reveal the effects of the laying angle and temperature on the bandgaps. Subsequently, a spiral-multilayered plate with periodic structures is studied, which shows an obvious vibration attenuation in the frequency ranges of the bandgaps and a deflected heat flux from the initial propagation direction. In the experimental investigation, the multi-phase spiral-multilayered anisotropic plate is simplified to a single-phase anisotropic plate made of aluminum. The characteristics of this type of anisotropic phononic crystal structure may pave the way for the design of a new kind of thermo-acoustic metamaterial serving in combined thermal and acoustic environments.     

Microstructural and electromagnetic properties of MnO2 coated nickel particles with submicron size

Nickel particles with submicron size are prepared by using the solvothermal method. These spheres are then coated with a layer of MnO2 using the soft chemical method. The microstructure is characterized by x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Energy x-ray dispersive spectrometry and high-resolution images show that the granular composites have a classical core/shell structure with an MnO2 superficial layer,no more than 10 nm in thickness. The hysteresis measurements indicate that these submicron-size Ni composite powders have small remanence and moderate coercivity. The electromagnetic properties of the powders measured by a vector network analyzer in a frequency range of 2-18 GHz are also reported in detail.