Effects of Stretching and Bending on the Performance of a PDMS-Based Polarization-Sensitive Terahertz Metamaterial Absorber

Abstract A perfect stretchable and flexible metamaterial absorber has been proposed for the terahertz region. The structure exhibits single-band absorption in TE polarization and double-band absorption in TM polarization, with absorption values exceeding 99%. The absorption spectrum has been analyzed for various polarization angles. The absorption mechanism has been investigated using interference theory, demonstrating excellent agreement between simulation and calculation results. The proposed structure has been evaluated under bending radii of 6 µm, 10 µm, 16 µm, and 20 µm, and the frequency shift of 5.25 THz, 4.53 THz, 4.2 THz, and 4 THz has been obtained for the mentioned bending radii. Furthermore, the metamaterial absorber has been studied under different stretch values (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%) in both X and Y directions. The frequency shift at the highest stretching limit compared to the non-stretched state in the X and Y direction has been determined as 1.51 THz and 0.42 THz, respectively. Overall, the proposed structure offers versatility for single-band or double-band measurement operations in two different polarizations, making it a promising candidate for various applications in the terahertz region.