Modulation of pore size to enhance electromagnetic wave absorption in 3D ordered macroporous materials

The study of the pore size characteristics of porous materials and the concretization of the loss mechanism is important for the preparation of high-performance wave-absorbing materials. Hence, the carbon materials with 3D ordered macroporous (3DOM) structure were prepared by template method in this paper. 3DOM structured carbon materials with different pore size characteristics were constructed by varying the particle size of template spheres. The amount of heterogeneous interfaces between carbon/air varies greatly among carbon materials with different pore sizes due to the difference in specific surface area, leading to different interfacial polarization, which in turn modulates the dielectric constant and impedance matching of the materials and enhances the wave-absorbing performance. The 3DOM RF-300 material with an aperture of 300 nm obtains the effective absorption bandwidth of 4.8 GHz and the strongest reflection loss of − 42.33 dB. In addition, based on the simulation level, the material loss mechanism to electromagnetic waves is investigated. Meanwhile, the practical application capability of the material is demonstrated by the radar scattering cross-sectional area simulation of 3DOM RF-300 material. The study provides a new path for designing high-performance wave absorbers based on material structure design and simulation techniques.