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Graphene aerogels have implied great potential for electromagnetic wave absorption. However, the investigation of their design for broadband absorption in the terahertz (THz) range remains insufficient. Here, we propose an anisotropic honeycomb stack metamaterial (AHSM) based on graphene to achieve ultrawideband THz absorption. The absorption mechanism is elucidated using the effective medium method, offering deeper physics insights. At low THz frequencies, the impedance matching from the air to the AHSM can be improved by reducing the chemical potential of graphene for high absorption. There is a suppression of absorption at the intermediate frequencies due to constructive interference, which can be avoided by shortening the sizes of honeycomb edges. With the aim to elevate absorption at high frequencies, one can increase the stack layer number to enhance multiple reflections and destructive interference within the metastructure. Based on the above principles, we design an AHSM that achieves a broadband absorbance of over 90 % from 1 THz to 10 THz. This absorption can tolerate a wide range of incident angles for both TE and TM wave excitations. Our research will provide a theoretical guide to future experimental exploration of graphene aerogels for THz metamaterial absorber applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sensors with single resonant mode often produce false positive when detecting the composite vibrational fingerprints of molecules in the terahertz (THz) range. In this study, a multi-resonant plasmonic structure, consisting of periodic graphene split ring resonator (SRR) arrays, is proposed for THz sensing. The effective detection of ultrathin (0.1 μm) lactose layer is given as an example to demonstrate the detection sensitivity. The vibrational fingerprints of lactose at 0.53 THz and 1.37 THz are enhanced in transmission spectra. Besides, resonant frequencies could be actively adjusted with the gate voltage applied on the SRR array. The physical mechanism of multi-resonance can be explained by a combination of LC resonance and dipole resonance of the structure, which can be observed in the electric field distributions. Moreover, the sensing performance can be further optimized by varying geometric parameters. Furthermore, the refractive index sensing performance of the sensor is also investigated by altering the surrounding medium on the surface. The designed sensor can work under an oblique incidence, which provides potential applications in biological analysis and medical diagnostics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene has a large specific surface area and a high electron traction rate, so it can be widely used in gas-sensing devices. To analyze the gas-sensing properties of graphene, the non-linear electromagnetic field response (NLEFR) of graphene before and after ammonia adsorption is studied in this paper. Under DC bias, the change rate of output harmonic power of the multilayer graphene-sensing characteristic analysis device is 30% higher than that of DC resistance. The results of this work indicate that a new graphene-based sensor can be developed using its NLEFR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tunable dual-band bandstop filter (BSF) in the far-infrared region is proposed based on a graphene surface plasmon. The BSF consists of a graphene waveguide and two graphene-ribbon resonators on the SiO2/Si substrate, supporting waveguide mode and edge mode, respectively. The influence of graphene structure parameters on transmission spectra is numerically investigated, which shows that the resonant properties are sensitive to the lengths of the graphene-ribbon resonators, and each stopband of dual-band BSF can be individually designed and tuned without affecting the other stopband. Moreover, the center frequencies of the two stopbands can be actively tuned independently by respective chemical potential of graphene-ribbon resonators. The proposed filter structure is promising to be utilized in future photonic integrated circuit applications as an ultracompact dual-band BSF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancing the light–matter interaction of graphene is an important issue for related photonic devices and applications. In view of its potential ultraviolet applications, we aim to achieve extremely high ultraviolet absorption in graphene without any nanostructure or microstructure patterning. By manipulating the polarization and angle of incident light, the ultraviolet power can be sufficiently coupled to the optical dissipation of graphene based on single-channel coherent perfect absorption in an optimized multilayered thin film structure. The ultraviolet absorbance ratios of single and four atomic graphene layers are enhanced up to 71.4% and 92.2%, respectively. Our research provides a simple and efficient scheme to trap ultraviolet light for developing promising photonic and optoelectronic devices based on graphene and potentially other 2D materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modulating near-infrared signals is critical for high density optical interconnects. In order to achieve enhanced modulation effects, we design a near-infrared modulator in combination with a gold nanostripe waveguide and graphene. Conventional assumption of isotropic permittivities for graphene leads to exaggeration of light absorption at the so-called “epsilon-near-zero” point and extreme overestimation of modulation efficiency, and the anisotropic permittivities assumption faces problems for thickness definition and lower computational efficiency. Therefore, we treat graphene as a 2D conductive surface in the simulation to solve these problems, and investigate the plasmonic effects on modulation enhancement and the trade-off on the modulation efficiency versus the insertion loss. Our method is promising for the design of advanced optical devices based on 2D materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terahertz waves are expected to be used in next-generation communications, detection, and other fields due to their unique characteristics. As a basic part of the terahertz application system, the terahertz detector plays a key role in terahertz technology. Due to the two-dimensional structure, graphene has unique characteristics features, such as exceptionally high electron mobility, zero band-gap, and frequency-independent spectral absorption, particularly in the terahertz region, making it a suitable material for terahertz detectors. In this review, the recent progress of graphene terahertz detectors related to photovoltaic effect (PV), photothermoelectric effect (PTE), bolometric effect, and plasma wave resonance are introduced and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a label-free multi-resonant graphene-based biosensor with periodic graphene nanoribbons is proposed for detection of composite vibrational fingerprints in the mid-infrared range. The multiple vibrational signals of biomolecules are simultaneously enhanced and detected by different resonances in the transmission spectrum. Each of the transmission dips can be independently tuned by altering the gating voltage applied on the corresponding graphene nanoribbon. Geometric parameters are investigated and optimized to obtain excellent sensing performance. Limit of detection is also evaluated in an approximation way. Besides, the biosensor can operate in a wide range of incident angles. Electric field intensity distributions are depicted to reveal the physical insight. Moreover, another biosensor based on periodic graphene nanodisks is further proposed, whose performance is insensitive to the polarization of incidence. Our research may have a potential for designing graphene-based biosensor used in many promising bioanalytical and pharmaceutical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Graphene aerogel prepared at different freeze-casting temperatures yield unequal electromagnetic properties. • Modulate absorption/reflection shielding performance through the introduction of new skeleton. • Graphene aerogel with different pore structures reveal different mechanical properties. We report a comprehensive analysis of the Electromagnetic (EM) properties of graphene aerogel-based shielding materials prepared by freeze casting. Controlling the freeze casting temperature allows for tailoring the pore sizes of graphene aerogels, which further affects the permittivity and EM shielding properties. To protect the aerogel structures from collapsing during high temperature heat-treatment, we used Melamine sponge (MS) as a supporting strut. Through a comparison with bare aerogels, we find that the presence of MS can significantly modify both the reflection and absorption performances and that an absorption-dominated shielding material can be obtained. After heat-treatment at 1000 °C for two hours, the MS-supported aerogel sample (MS-aero) showed a shielding efficiency of 55.8 dB. Our work shows that the material composition and the microstructural architecture of aerogels crucially influence their electromagnetic shielding efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the aim of improving UV light trapping capability in monolayer graphene, a nanomesh metamaterial absorber is proposed, which exhibits the polarization-insensitive feature due to the geometrical symmetry. Through the functional combination of magnetic resonance and UV mirror, the absorption of unpolarized UV light in monolayer graphene can reach 99.5% under normal incidence. The absorption enhancement is induced by the magnetic resonance mode between the dielectric silica nanomesh and the calcium fluoride base layer. The effects of geometric parameters on the absorption spectra are systematically investigated. The proposed structure shows insensitive to manufacturing deviations, which can maintain at a high UV absorption rate of more than 99% within the nanomesh width ranging from 50 nm to 90 nm. Furthermore, after delicate optimization of the geometric parameters, two sharp resonances with absorbance more than 90% can be excited simultaneously inside the absorber. Our work provides an important theoretical guide for the design of optoelectronic devices based on two-dimensional materials in the UV range. • Near-unity UV-light absorption is achieved in the monolayer graphene. • The proposed structure is insensitive to manufacturing deviations. • Two sharp resonances with absorbance over 90% can be excited inside the absorber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]