Perfect Solar Light Absorption and Efficient Photo-Thermal Generation

In order to develop new high-efficiency photothermal conversion materials, we propose and numerically verify a rectangular layered cavity metasurface (RLCM) for efficient solar light absorption and photo-thermal generation. The RLCM demonstrates near-perfect absorption across an ultra-wide spectral range of 310–4235 nm, with a weighted absorption exceeding 97% for the entire solar spectrum (280-4000 nm) under AM 1.5G conditions. By subjecting the RLCM to concentrated light excitation with a concentrated light ratio of 500, we achieve efficient photo-thermal generation, resulting in a steady-state temperature exceeding 645°C. Furthermore, the RLCM exhibits consistent photo-thermal performance when excited by different wavelengths of light, ensuring reliable and versatile operation. These findings provide impressive new ideas for the development of efficient photo-thermal devices.