Science and technologies based on terahertz frequency electromagnetic radiation (100 GHz–30 THz) have developed rapidly over the last 30 years. For most of the 20th Century, terahertz radiation, then referred to as sub-millimeter wave or far-infrared radiation, was mainly utilized by astronomers and some spectroscopists. Following the development of laser based terahertz time-domain spectroscopy in the 1980s and 1990s the field of THz science and technology expanded rapidly, to the extent that it now touches many areas from fundamental science to 'real world' applications. For example THz radiation is being used to optimize materials for new solar cells, and may also be a key technology for the next generation of airport security scanners. While the field was emerging it was possible to keep track of all new developments, however now the field has grown so much that it is increasingly difficult to follow the diverse range of new discoveries and applications that are appearing. At this point in time, when the field of THz science and technology is moving from an emerging to a more established and interdisciplinary field, it is apt to present a roadmap to help identify the breadth and future directions of the field. The aim of this roadmap is to present a snapshot of the present state of THz science and technology in 2017, and provide an opinion on the challenges and opportunities that the future holds. To be able to achieve this aim, we have invited a group of international experts to write 18 sections that cover most of the key areas of THz science and technology. We hope that The 2017 Roadmap on THz science and technology will prove to be a useful resource by providing a wide ranging introduction to the capabilities of THz radiation for those outside or just entering the field as well as providing perspective and breadth for those who are well established. We also feel that this review should serve as a useful guide for government and funding agencies.

The 2016 terahertz science and technology roadmap

The combination of carbon materials and ferrite materials has recently attracted increased interest in microwave absorption applications. Herein, a novel composite with cobalt cores encapsulated in a porous carbon shell was synthesized via a facile sintering process with a cobaltic metal–organic framework (Co-MOF-74) as the precursor. Because of the magnetic loss caused by the Co cores and dielectric loss caused by the carbon shell with a unique porous structure, together with the interfacial polarization between two components, the ferromagnetic composite exhibited enhanced electromagnetic wave absorption performance compared to traditional ferrite materials. With the thermal decomposition temperature of 800 °C, the optimal reflection loss value achieved −62.12 dB at 11.85 GHz with thin thickness (2.4 mm), and the bandwidth ranged from 4.1 to 18 GHz with more than 90% of the microwave that could be absorbed. The achieved performance illustrates that the as-prepared porous Co–C core–shell composite shows ...

Porous Co-C Core-Shell Nanocomposites Derived from Co-MOF-74 with Enhanced Electromagnetic Wave Absorption Performance.

We report the experimental observation of Landau quantization of molecular beam epitaxy grown Sb{2}Te{3} thin films by a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope. Different from all the reported systems, the Landau quantization in a Sb{2}Te{3} topological insulator is not sensitive to the intrinsic substitutional defects in the films. As a result, a nearly perfect linear energy dispersion of surface states as a 2D massless Dirac fermion system is achieved. We demonstrate that four quintuple layers are the thickness limit for a Sb{2}Te{3} thin film being a 3D topological insulator. The mechanism of the Landau-level broadening is discussed in terms of enhanced quasiparticle lifetime.

http://absimage.aps.org/image/MAR12/MWS_MAR12-2011-001136.pdf

Landau quantization and the thickness limit of topological insulator thin films of Sb$_{2}$Te$_{3}$

Superhydrophobic electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding textile (EMIST) is of great significance to the safety and long-term service of all-weather outdoor equipment. However, it is still challenging to achieve long-term durability and stability under external mechanical deformations or other harsh service conditions. Herein, by designing and implementing silver nanowire (AgNW) networks and a superhydrophobic coating onto a commercial textile, we demonstrate a highly robust superhydrophobic EMIST. The resultant EMIST shows a synergy of high water contact angle (160.8°), low sliding angle (2.9°), and superior EMI shielding effectiveness (51.5 dB). Remarkably, the EMIST still maintains its superhydrophobic feature and high EMI shielding level (42.6 dB) even after 5000 stretching-releasing cycles. Moreover, the EMIST exhibits strong resistance to ultrasonic treatment up to 60 min, peeling test up to 100 cycles, strong acidic/alkaline solutions, and different organic solvents, indicating its outstanding mechanical robustness and chemical durability. These attractive features of the EMIST are mainly a result of the joint action of AgNWs, carbon nanotubes, polytetrafluoroethylene nanoparticles, and fluoroacrylic polymer. This work offers a promising approach for the design of future durable, superhydrophobic EMISTs, which are capable of remaining fully functional against long-time exposure to extreme conditions, for example, wet and corrosive environments.

Robustly Superhydrophobic Conductive Textile for Efficient Electromagnetic Interference Shielding

Due to substantial development of electronics and telecommunication techniques, materials with electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance are significant in alleviating the interference impacts induced from a remarkable variety of devices. In the work, we propose novel sandwich structures for manipulating the EM wave transport, which holds unique EMI shielding features of frequency selectivity. By employing electrical and magnetic loss spacers, the resultant sandwich structures are endowed with tunable EMI shielding performance, showing substantial improvements in overall shielding effectiveness along with pronounced shielding peak shift. The mechanisms suggest that the multiple interfaces, electromagnetic loss media, and changes of representative EM wavelength could be critical roles in tailoring the EMI shielding performance. The results provide a versatile strategy that could be extended in other frequency ranges and various types of sandwich structures, promising great opportunities for ...

Graphene-Based Sandwich Structures for Frequency Selectable Electromagnetic Shielding.

Since manipulating electromagnetic waves with electromagnetic active materials for environmental and electric engineering is a significant task, here a novel prototype is reported by introducing reduced graphene oxide (RGO) interfaces in carbon fiber (CF) networks for a hierarchical carbon fiber/reduced graphene oxide/nickel (CF-RGO-Ni) composite textile. Upon charaterizations of the microscopic morphologies, electrical and magnetic properties, the presence of three-dimensional RGO interfaces and bifunctional nickel nanoparticles substantially influences the related physical properties in the resulting hierarchical composite textiles. Eletromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance suggests that the hierarchical composite textiles hold a strong shielding effectiveness greater than 61 dB, showing greater advantages than conventional polymeric and foamy shielding composites. As a polymer-free lightweight structure, flexible CF-RGO-Ni composites of all electromagnetic active components offer unique understanding of the multi-scale and multiple mechanisms in electromagnetic energy consumption. Such a novel prototype of shielding structures along with convenient technology highlight a strategy to achieve high-performance EMI shielding, coupled with a universal approach for preparing advanced lightweight composites with graphene interfaces.

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1361-6528/28/4/045710/pdf

Construction of three-dimensional graphene interfaces into carbon fiber textiles for increasing deposition of nickel nanoparticles: flexible hierarchical magnetic textile composites for strong electromagnetic shielding

Polymeric composites with thermally conductive hybrid fillers are significant in the electronics and thermal dissipation , where thermal transport along with multifunctionality is required to meet the application needs. Introduction of hybrid fillers would induce multiple interface scattering and rational design on the filler contact should be the critical criteria, while there is insufficient principle. To promote the thermal transport capability, in this paper, a contact probability model has been established to quantitatively analyze the thermal conductivity and contact probability in the silicone rubber composites with hybrid fillers (including various aluminium oxides and silicon carbide whisker). The results from experiment and simulation suggest that three critical parameters, i.e. volume fraction, filler shape and filler size, are the essential factors of hybrid fillers on impacting the thermal conductivity of composites. With understanding the contact types of hybrid filler, the optimized thermal conductivity has been obtained in the composites with aluminium oxides and silicon carbide whisker fillers. The model and analysis here have provided new contact mechanism for understanding the thermal transport in composites, which could be extended to rationally design and fabricate other types of polymeric composites with hybrid fillers. 

Promoting the thermal transport via understanding the intrinsic relation between thermal conductivity and interfacial contact probability in the polymeric composites with hybrid fillers

Composite dielectrics with excellent electrical properties are integral to today’s energy industries and power infrastructure. Epoxy resin filled with inorganic nano-fillers has been extensively studied for its excellent performances. In this paper, barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanoparticles are selected as the fillers and fluorinated by plasma treatment. The morphology, element content and chemical bond of BaTiO3 and fluorinated BaTiO3 fillers are characterized by SEM, EDS, XPS and FTIR, respectively. The influence of filler concentration and fluorination on flashover voltage of epoxy resin composites was studied. We found that the fluorinated BTO could improve the compatibility of filler and matrix and surface insulation of epoxy resin composites. Finally, the relationship between filler concentration, dielectric constant, fluorination treatment and charge dissipation was analyzed, and the trap distribution on the surface of composites was calculated by isothermal surface potential decay method. Fluorinated BaTiO3 particles as fillers blended with epoxy resin have great engineering application potential.

Qing Xie

Papers

Construction of three-dimensional graphene interfaces into carbon fiber textiles for increasing deposition of nickel nanoparticles: flexible hierarchical magnetic textile composites for strong electromagnetic shielding

Promoting the thermal transport via understanding the intrinsic relation between thermal conductivity and interfacial contact probability in the polymeric composites with hybrid fillers

Plasma fluorination of BaTiO3 for enhancement of interfacial adhesion and surface insulation of epoxy resin

Sb2Te3 nanosheets: Topological insulators with extraordinary electromagnetic response behaviors

A highly directional metamaterial-based terahertz circulator that does not require an external magnetic field