RESEARCH ARTICLE

Multi-scale regulation of structure and material for visible-infrared-LiDAR multispectral camouflage

¹ College of Sciences, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha 410073, China
² College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
³ School of Physical Science and Technology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China

^* Corresponding authors (emails: zhangzhaojian@nudt.edu.cn (Zhaojian Zhang); chenhuan11@nudt.edu.cn (Huan Chen); yangjunbo@nudt.edu.cn (Junbo Yang))

Received: 12 September 2025
Revised: 25 October 2025
Accepted: 27 October 2025

Abstract

The development of detection technologies has driven an urgent need for multispectral camouflage capabilities. However, the requirement for multispectral camouflage, including colored visible (VIS) camouflage, adaptive infrared camouflage, and multi-band light detection and ranging (LiDAR) camouflage, challenges conventional single-design approaches from design to fabrication. Here, we propose a simplified design strategy that enables decoupling between material and structural regulation, thereby enhancing multiband modulation performance. From visible to near-infrared (NIR) bands, thin-film Fabry-Pérot cavities facilitate simultaneous visible structural color and NIR laser band absorption. The calculated VIS results are in excellent concordance with experimental ones (∆Ē < 6). Experimental measurements further demonstrate broadband (900–1550 nm) ultra-high absorption (A > 90%) in the NIR band. The orders-of-magnitude difference in wavelengths enables structural dimensions decoupling, effectively separating the influence of the architecture on visible and mid-infrared (MIR) performance. In the MIR region, the metadevice realizes adaptive infrared thermal camouflage (Δε_{8–14 μm} = 0.46) with LiDAR camouflage based on phase-change material. Especially, the peak absorption reaches 99.2% near the wavelength of 10.6 μm (A_{10.6 μm} = 92.1%). Moreover, the metadevice exhibits independent triple-band display including VIS, laser and MIR bands. Our study provides a theoretical framework for multi-scale optical modulation and demonstrates broad potential for applications in multispectral camouflage, multi-band displays, information encryption, and radiative cooling.