Electrical tuning of radiative cooling at ambient conditions

Passive radiative cooling forms a sustainable means for cooling of objects through thermal radiation. Along with progress on static cooling systems, there is an emerging need for dynamic control to enable thermoregulation. Here, we demonstrate temperature regulation of devices at ambient pressure and temperature by electrically tuning their radiative cooling power. Our concept exploits the possibility to electrochemically tune the thermal emissivity and thereby cooling power of a conducting polymer, which enabled reversible control of device temperatures of around 0.25°C at ambient conditions in a sky simulator. Besides tuneable radiative cooling by exposure to the sky, the concept could also contribute to reduced needs for indoor climate control by enabling dynamic control of thermal energy flows between indoor objects, such as between people and walls.