Tunable materials are paving the way towards improved functionality of metamaterials. Vanadium oxide (VO2) with its prototypical near-room-temperature transition between phases featuring greatly contrasting electrical and optical behavior is an appealing candidate as an active component in metamaterials. However, it is seldom known that VO2 in itself has metamaterial characteristics. VO2 under certain temperature conditions demonstrates a phase coexistence enabling highly tunable electrical and optical properties. In this chapter, we describe how VO2 in its hysteretic region behaves as a smart responsive Metasurface with cutting edge applications.
Part of the book: Metamaterials and Metasurfaces