Optically transparent conformal ultra-broadband metamaterial absorber based on ITO conductive film

Abstract

Abstract An optically transparent metamaterial absorber with polarization insensitivity and wide-angle absorption is proposed. The absorber, which consists of an indium tin oxide resistive film and a low-loss substrate, is optically transparent and conformal. By tuning the reflection response of the frequency-selective surface and the thickness of the spacer layer, the whole structure achieves an absorption of more than 97% in the range of 6.54–18.66 GHz. Numerical simulation results show that the absorber can still maintain an absorption rate of more than 85% in a wide range of oblique incidence angles from 0° to 60°. In addition, the intrinsic physical mechanism of the absorber is elucidated using the impedance matching theory and the distribution of surface currents. The ratio of dielectric loss and ohmic loss is also quantitatively analyzed. Finally, the reflection and transmission coefficients of the sample were measured in a microwave anechoic chamber, which showed a good agreement with the simulation results. This design uses a low-resistivity resistive film as a frequency-selective surface, which was rarely involved in previous studies, and provides a new idea for future design and application.