A vanadium dioxide integrated hybird metamaterial with electrically driven multifunctional control

An electric current triggered multifunctional vanadium dioxide (VO
₂
) integrated photonic metamaterial is presented. In our metamaterial design, the nanoengineered topologically continuous metallic structure simultaneously supports the optical and electrical functionalities. Moreover, acting as part of the resonating structure, the VO
₂
thin film enables the tunable nature of the device. By presenting a series of proof-of-concept studies, we demonstrate the proposed hybrid metamaterial as a new platform for multifunction electro-optic control including reflectance switching, a rewritable memory process and manageable localized camouflage. The design methodology introduced here provides a universal approach to creating self-sufficient and highly versatile nanophotonic systems.