Using powerful femtosecond laser pulses, scientists etched on the metal surface nanostructures that selectively absorb light only from the solar spectrum.
The plain metal surface is shiny andreflects light well. Earlier, a team from the University of Rochester developed a technology for imparting a black surface to metals, but this still did not allow achieving maximum absorption efficiency.
Now they have introduced a selective option that not only absorbs light better, but alsoreduces heat dissipation at other wavelengths.According to physicists, such a metal is an “ideal absorber of solar energy” because it allows it to be collected using a thermoelectric generator.
During the experiments, the researchers foundmade of aluminum, copper, steel and tungsten, the latter has the best efficiency of absorption of sunlight after laser treatment. In this case, the etching of nanostructures increases the generation of thermal energy by 130% compared with untreated metal.
This technology also allows you to change the natural color of the metal not only to black, but also to others, for example, blue, gold or gray.
Earlier, we also reported on the invention of a flexible metal material that is half the size of paper.
text: Ilya Bauer, photo and video: University of Rochester
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