A Novel Transparent Memristor-Type Infrared Emissivity Modulator for Multispectral Compatible Display

The regulation of infrared (IR) thermal radiation has received widespread attention; the proposals have been made for various devices that use electrochromic materials. However, the visible appearance of the mentioned devices also changes when the IR states are altered. Herein, the memristive mechanism is utilized to regulate IR emissivity and design a novel transparent memristor-type modulator featuring an Indium tin oxide (ITO)/HfO2/ITO structure. The modulator exhibits a dynamic emissivity variation of 0.38 in the IR region of 2.5-25 mu m, without compromising transparency in the visible region under the application of an electric voltage. The migration of oxygen vacancies results in the modification of interface barriers and the formation of oxygen vacancy-enriched regions, thereby enabling the modulator to exhibit resistive switching behavior and regulate IR emissivity. An array of modulators is also assembled, demonstrating the ability to independently display visible and IR information. In this work, new possibilities are presented for various applications such as multispectral displays, energy-efficient thermoregulation, encrypted information displays, and camouflage. A new strategy is developed to regulate infrared (IR) thermal radiation by utilizing the memristive mechanism for controlling IR emissivity. The memristor-type modulator with an Indium tin oxide (ITO)/HfO2/ITO structure can effectively regulate IR emissivity while maintaining transparency in the visible range. This innovative approach offers a new solution for decoupling the control of IR emissivity and visible color.image (c) 2024 WILEY-VCH GmbH