An innovative VO₂ metasurface designs for adaptive radiation cooling smart windows

Buildings energy conservation demand climate-responsive thermal solutions. Conventional radiative coolers cannot balance efficiency and climate response, with fixed reflectivity and irreversible phase changes wasting 48 % energy via overcooling in temperate zones, conflicting with carbon neutrality. We engineered a climate-responsive radiative metasurface through vertically aligned vanadium dioxide (VO₂) nanosheets with cavity-modulated dual-band switching. Notably, the device demonstrates a thermal emissivity modulation of 0.85 within the thermal spectrum, a luminous transmittance of 68.8 % and a solar absorption(A) modulation of -3.3 % (A_metal=27.7 %) in the solar spectrum. Our findings indicate that both thermal emissivity and solar absorption can be dynamically tuned using an equivalent capacitance-inductance (LC) resonator switch between the VO₂ nanosheets. This work showcases a multiband emitter capable of modulating both solar and radiative cooling properties, paving the way for the advancement of adaptive radiation coolers. © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.