Photovoltaic Breakthrough Lets Engineered Materials Emit More Blackbody Radiation Than Physics Says They Should
Blackbody Radiation from Metamaterials Confused about blackbody radiation? Just check out this helpful diagram. Physical Review LettersMetamaterials to the rescue once again Metamaterials as a class get a lot of press for their ability to exhibit a negative refraction index, the characteristic that lets them bend light around a space or object (the much ballyhooed "invisibility cloak"). But designer metamaterials have potential reaching far beyond just visible light. They can be customized to have all sorts of tailored responses to radiation, and thanks to a Duke University research team, one of those responses could have a huge impact on thermophotovoltaics and other energy conversion schemes. The team has demonstrated the ability to use metamaterials to engineer emitted "blackbody" radiation with an efficiency that surpasses the natural limits that should be imposed on the material by its temperature. In English, that means better energy conversion efficiency in things like photovoltaics and possibly waste...