UCLA

VO2 is a thermochromic material that has been historically incorporated in variable emissive multilayer (VEM) designs for passive thermal management. However, this remains a relatively nascent research area, and limited efforts have been directed towards optimizing the Fabry-Perot resonance VO2-based VEM design. This study presents the synthesis and characterization of VO2 films deposited using magnetron sputtering. The change in emittance (Δϵ) of VEM designs, incorporating silicon or silicon oxide spacer layers on silver reflectors, are documented. The study showcases the optimization of the VEM design, achieving a notable normal Δϵ of 0.81 with just a single layer of VO2. Additionally, enhancement layers to the VEM design are explored and experimentally detailed, demonstrating improvements in Δϵ through broadband enhanced resonance.