Dual-controlled tunable dual-band and ultra-broadband coherent perfect absorber in the THz range

This paper proposes a vanadium dioxide metamaterial-based tunable, polarization-independent coherent perfect absorber (CPA) in the terahertz frequency range. The designed CPA demonstrates intelligent reconfigurable switch modulation from an ultra-broadband absorber mode to a dual-band absorber mode via the thermally controlled of VO2. The mode of ultra-broadband absorber is realized when the conductivity of VO2 reaches 11850 S/m via controlling its temperature around T = 328 K. In this mode, the CPA demonstrates more than 90% absorption efficiency within the ultra-wide frequency band that extends from 0.1 THz to 10.8 THz. As the conductivity of VO2 reaches 2x10(5) S/m (T = 340 K), the CPA switches to a dual-band absorber mode where a relatively high absorption efficiency of 98% and 99.7% is detected at frequencies of 4.5 THz and 9.8 THz, respectively. Additionally, using phase modulation of the incident light, the proposed CPA can regulate the absorption efficiency, which can be intelligently controlled from perfect absorption to high pass-through transmission. Owing to the ability of the proposed CPA to intelligently control the performance of light, this study can contribute towards enhancing the performance of stealth devices, all-optical switches and coherent photodetectors. (C) 2022 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement

Automated summary

This paper proposes a tunable, polarization-independent coherent perfect absorber based on vanadium dioxide metamaterial in the terahertz frequency range. The designed absorber can switch from an ultra-broadband absorber mode to a dual-band absorber mode via thermally controlled VO2. The proposed absorber has potential applications in stealth devices, all-optical switches, and coherent photodetectors.