Potential applications of carbon thin films in metamaterial design

Graphene is highly promising for flexible, biocompatible electronics due to its strength, flexibility, transparency, and stable behavior across frequencies, but its fabrication remains challenging. As an alternative, thin graphitic films—especially graphitic resistive films (GRFs) produced by pyrolyzing polymer films and using a nickel catalyst—offer similar electrical conductivity with simpler processing.

Simulations of GRF-based split ring resonator (SRR) arrays show that these materials can function effectively as narrow-band microwave absorbers, with performance comparable to gold-based structures within realistic conductivity ranges. Overall, GRFs provide a practical and scalable substitute for graphene in metamaterial applications.