Laser Dynamic Control of the Thermal Emissivity of a Planar Cavity Structure Based on a Phase-Change Material

Tailoring the thermal emission of a material in the long-wave infrared (IR) range of 8–13 μm is crucial for many IR-adaptive applications, including personal thermal management, IR camouflage, and radiative cooling. Although various materials and surface structures have been proposed for these purposes, space-selective and dynamic control of their emissivity is challenging. In this study, we present a planar surface cavity structure consisting of a Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) film on top of a thin metal reflector to modulate its emissivity by using an ultraviolet laser beam. A laser-induced phase change in GST allowed for the local control of emissivity. The average emissivity in the long-wave IR range was tunable from 0.15 to 0.77 simply by changing the laser energy deposited on the GST film. This enabled the laser printing of high-contrast emissivity patterns, which were erasable by subsequent thermal annealing. Emissivity-modulated GST cavities could be fabricated on not only rigid substrates but also flexible plastic substrates such as polyimide. The GST surface cavity was highly flexible and remained stable upon repeated bending to a curvature radius of 0.5 cm. This study provides a promising route for realizing scalable and flexible thermal emitters with tunable surface emissivity.