Responsive Metasurface for Directional Control of Laser and Thermal Emission Dynamic Regulation
Mengqi Zhang, Pan Wang, Xianghui Liu, Yile Fan, Haoyu Wang, Shao-Wen Chen, Tongxiang Fan, Chengyu Xiao, Ya Sun, Di Zhang, Han Zhou
Abstract
Responsive metasurfaces can efficiently control the propagation and spectral properties of electromagnetic (EM) waves, emerging as an attractive technology in energy and information fields. However, achieving non-interference manipulation of near-infrared (NIR) laser wavelength and mid-infrared (MIR) region with spatial and spectral responsive capabilities is a challenging and long-sought task for applications, such as multispectral adaptive camouflage and anti-counterfeiting. Here, a multispectral responsive metasurface is demonstrated that enables independent modulation of MIR thermal emission while maintaining robust, spatially directional control of NIR laser reflections. This metasurface simultaneously achieves superior ultralow specular reflectivity of 0.049 (0.8-1.2 µm) and high thermal emission regulation capability of 0.51 (8-13 µm), attributed to NIR reflection splitting and a photonically amplified metal-insulator transition, respectively. The metasurface's exceptional capability to realize temperature-invariant NIR laser and dynamic MIR camouflage is experimentally proved under significant fluctuating thermal environments, superior to existing laser-IR-compatible camouflage technologies. Dual-mode information anti-counterfeiting is further demonstrated through independent channels for detection angles and temperature responses. This work provides a new pathway for stimulus-responsive materials with spatial and spectral modulation toward diverse multispectral application scenarios.