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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Characterization of Thermal Transport in One-dimensional Solid Materials

Characterization of Thermal Transport in One-dimensional Solid Materials

Published on: January 26, 2014

Thermal camouflage based on the phase-changing material GST.

Yurui Qu¹, Qiang Li¹, Lu Cai¹

¹State Key Laboratory of Modern Optical Instrumentation, College of Optical Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China.

Light, Science & Applications

|March 7, 2019

Summary

This study demonstrates a new thermal camouflage device using a phase-changing material. It achieves continuous, near-perfect thermal camouflage across varying temperatures and wide observation angles.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Optics
Thermal Engineering

Background:

Thermal camouflage is crucial for various applications.
Existing methods struggle with dynamic temperature and angle variations.
Need for advanced materials enabling tunable thermal properties.

Purpose of the Study:

To experimentally demonstrate a dynamic thermal camouflage device.
To investigate continuous camouflage under varying thermal backgrounds and observation angles.
To explore the use of phase-changing materials for thermal control.

Main Methods:

Incorporation of the phase-changing material Germanium-Antimony-Tellurium (Ge2Sb2Te5, GST).
Tuning device emissivity by controlling GST phase transitions.
Experimental validation of thermal camouflage performance.

Main Results:

Near-perfect thermal camouflage achieved continuously from 30°C to 50°C.
Camouflage effectiveness remained robust for observation angles from 0° to 60°.
Demonstrated dynamic control over thermal emission.

Conclusions:

The developed device offers robust and continuous thermal camouflage.
Phase-changing materials like GST are effective for dynamic thermal emission control.
Paves the way for practical applications in thermal information management.