Spectral selectivity of multiple nanoparticles doped thin films.

Microscopic thin film doped with different species of nanoparticles displays a unique wavelength selectivity in the context of micro/nanoscale radiative heat transfer. We propose a methodology to shift, broaden, and suppress the thermal radiative selectivity in the desired wavelength ranges. Measured transmittance spectra of potassium bromide pellet doped with a single species of nanoparticles are compared with the theoretical prediction using refractive indices that are extracted by refitting transmittance spectra curve according to the Lorentz-Drude model. For a media doped with more than two species of nanoparticles, a successive effective dielectric function using the refitted complex refractive indices and Maxwell Garnett theory is used to evaluate the thermal radiative selectivity of the composites. It has been confirmed theoretically and experimentally that the wavelength selectivity in the transmittance spectra can be influenced by choosing proper species of materials and varying volume fractions of multiple nanoparticles. This work has shed light on the design and fabrication of novel composites doped with multiple particles for applications such as thermophotovoltaics, radiative cooling, and biosensing.