3D printed carbon based all-dielectric honeycomb metastructure for thin and broadband electromagnetic absorption

Excellent electromagnetic absorbers with comprehensive performances of thin thickness, lightweight, broadband and strong absorption have become a significant requirement for electromagnetic interference and stealth technologies. In this study, a honeycomb metamaterial absorber with the conductive coating is designed and proposed, with 3D printed honeycomb skeleton coated by the conductive coating composed of carbon fibers, carbon nanotubes and resin. The optimized metamaterial absorber realized > 90% absorption in 5.65 similar to 40 GHz with a total thickness of 6 mm, indicating a relative bandwidth of 152.9% with a relative thickness of 0.107. The excellent performances of the proposed absorber were contributed by the synergy effect of the electric param-eters of the fabricated composites as well as the geometry parameters of the honeycomb meta-structure, which induced multiple loss modes. The synergy design on the 3D printed honeycomb skeleton and conductive coating would give a new insight into designing lightweight ultra-broadband microwave metamaterial absorbers.

Automated summary

This study proposes a honeycomb metamaterial absorber with a conductive coating, consisting of carbon fibers, carbon nanotubes and resin. The optimized absorber achieves over 90% absorption in the frequency range of 5.65 to 40 GHz, with a thickness of only 6 mm, indicating a relative bandwidth of 152.9% and a relative thickness of 0.107. The excellent performances are achieved through the synergy effect of the electric parameters of the composites and the geometry parameters of the honeycomb structure.