Fusing electrochromic technology with other advanced technologies: A new roadmap for future development

Electrochromism is the phenomenon of certain materials reversibly changing their colours or optical properties through redox reactions under an applied electric field, which has found applications in smart windows, displays and so on. The past four decades have witnessed the rapid development of electrochromic technology; however, it remains severely developmentally challenged due to its limited practical applications. Predictably, as a colour control technology that gives visual information readable by the naked eye, electrochromism should have much wider applications by applying the visualization technique to various functional devices. Indeed, some recent research findings show that integrating electrochromic technology with other advanced technologies has imparted a new strong impetus for the further development of electrochromic technology. However, a systematic review of the literature on the fusing of electrochromic technology with other advanced technologies is still lacking, demonstrating the urgent need for further studies, although there are some review papers on electrochromic energy storage devices. In this review, we systematically discuss the recent advances in the fusing of electrochromic technology with other advanced technologies, including wearable technology, thermal control technology, energy storage technology, energy harvesting technology and sensing technology. The integration modes, design principles and performance optimization for different types of interdisciplinary electrochromic devices are highlighted. Finally, an outlook concerning future trends and issues in the research field is also provided.