3D printed SiC nanowire reinforced composites for broadband electromagnetic absorption

SiC nanowire/acrylic resin (SiC_nw/ACR) composites with broadband electromagnetic (EM) absorption capabilities were fabricated by a novel procedure using 3D stereolithography (3D-SL) printing technology. The EM absorption abilities of the composites can be adjusted by tuning the SiC_nw content and the thickness of the printing layer. When the SiC_nw content is 3?wt% and the thickness of the printing layer is 25?μm–50?μm, the SiC_nw/ACR composite has an optimally broad effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) and a high efficiency for EM absorption, whether assessing the C, X or Ku band, because of the high dielectric loss and proper impedance matching between the materials and free space. In the C band (4–8?GHz), the EAB reaches 2.9?GHz, and the reflection loss (RL) reaches ?34.1?dB; in the X band (8–12?GHz), the EAB reaches 4?GHz, which covers the entire X band, and the RL reaches ?34.5?dB; in the Ku band (12–18?GHz), the EAB exceeds 6?GHz, which covers the whole Ku band, and the RL reaches ?34.7?dB. This research is of great importance to the rapid preparation of parts, shells or devices with arbitrarily complex shapes and high efficiency broadband EM absorption abilities.