Highly efficient flexible structured metasurface by roll-to-roll printing for diurnal radiative cooling

Abstract

An ideal radiative cooler requires accurate spectral control capability to achieve efficient thermal emission in the atmospheric transparency window (8–13 μm), low solar absorption, good stability, scalability, and a simple structure for effective diurnal radiative cooling. Flexible cooling films made from polymer relying on polymer intrinsic absorbance represent a cost-effective solution but lack accuracy in spectral control. Here, we propose and demonstrate a metasurface concept enabled by periodically arranged three-dimensional (3D) trench-like structures in a thin layer of polymer for high-performance radiative cooling. The structured polymer metasurface radiative cooler is manufactured by a roll-to-roll printing method. It exhibits superior spectral breadth and selectivity, which offers outstanding omnidirectional absorption/emission (96.1%) in the atmospheric transparency window, low solar absorption (4.8%), and high stability. Impressive cooling power of 129.8 W m−2 and temperature deduction of 7 °C on a clear sky midday have been achieved, promising broad practical applications in energy saving and passive heat dispersion fields.