In a world where climate change poses an ever-growing threat, reducing conventional energy use is paramount to protecting the atmosphere.

An assistant professor at ASU, Liping Wang explores using thermal radiation to meet the demand for sources of renewable energy and energy conservation devices. With this aim, Wang is developing nanowire-based metamaterials, which are more flexible and tunable – and therefore yield the best results.

Wang says these technologies can help to produce high-efficiency renewable energy sources and to recycle waste heat. By re-using this previously-wasted heat, the demand for conventional energy sources declines and – in turn – so do greenhouse gas emissions and the acceleration of climate change.