Tamm plasmon selective thermal emitters.

Area of Science:

• Photonics
• Materials Science
• Optics

Background:

• Selective thermal emitters are crucial for energy efficiency and thermal management.
• Tamm plasmon polaritons (TPPs) offer unique optical properties at metal-dielectric interfaces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate selective thermal emission based on TPP excitation.
• To investigate the tunability of thermal emission by modifying the TPP structure.
• To explore the potential for low-cost, large-area thermal emitter fabrication.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a TPP structure comprising a distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) and a thin metal film.
• Experimental characterization of thermal emission properties.
• Tuning the DBR's photonic bandgap to control emission spectra.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated selective thermal emission through TPP excitation.
• Achieved tunability of thermal emission spectra by altering the DBR's photonic bandgap.
• Confirmed the correlation between bandgap modification and emission characteristics.

Conclusions:

• TPPs provide a viable platform for creating tunable selective thermal emitters.
• The demonstrated method offers a pathway to low-cost, large-area fabrication of advanced thermal emitters.
• This technology has potential applications in energy harvesting, infrared stealth, and thermal management systems.