VO2-based Terahertz Metamaterial Devices Switchable between Absorption and Transmission

• Published in: Semiconductors (Woodbury, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2024-07, Vol.58 (7), p.558-564
• Main Authors: Yu, Hang, Zhu, Bingda, Qi, Xiaoyu, Guo, Lijun
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Absorption; Biological properties; Functionals; Magnetic Materials; Magnetism; Metamaterials; Phase change materials; Phase transitions; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Radar detection; Radar imaging; Terahertz frequencies; Transition temperature; Transmittance; Vanadium dioxide; Vanadium oxides
• ISSN: 1063-7826; 1090-6479
• DOI: 10.1134/S1063782624601419

Terahertz waves have the characteristics of low energy and good transmittance, which have broad application prospects in communication, spectral detection of biological samples, radar imaging, and sensing. Conventional materials are difficult to interact with terahertz waves, and metamaterials have emerged as a way to modulate terahertz waves. However, after years of development, the traditional metamaterials are currently facing problems such as difficult to realize multi-functionality and non-tunable. Therefore, in this paper, a multifunctional tunable terahertz metamaterial is designed using the phase change material vanadium dioxide. This device can perform both transmission and absorption functions. Controlling the temperature can realize the functional conversion of the device, and when the temperature is low (20°C), the transmittance of the device is more than 90% when it operates at 0.48 THz, with good performance of the transmission function. And after increasing the temperature above the VO 2 phase transition temperature (66°C), it can be used as a narrow-band absorber with an absorption rate as high as 99.3% at 1.247 THz (80°C), which achieves a perfect absorption effect. In addition, the device is tunable, and its absorption and transmission modulation amplitudes can reach 95.3 and 89%, respectively.