Broadband homogeneous absorbers under visible light
Phys. Rev. Applied 25, 024038 – Published 11 February, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/xcml-mnx1
Abstract
A minimalistic setup comprising a single homogeneous material, in bulk or two-dimensional form, is examined with respect to its ability to absorb visible light. The performance is assessed in terms of the Rozanov bound expressing the bandwidth-thickness balance, the average absorption indicating the broadband efficiency, and the minimal absorbance characterizing the self-camouflage ability. The materials used include ordinary lossy dielectric media, substances with ideal dispersion yielding perfect absorption across the whole visible spectrum, as well as their causal counterparts. The reported results show the optimal operating conditions of such a simple design, which may serve as a key component in absorption-based applications ranging from energy harvesting and medical imaging to photodetection and radar target concealment.
