Preparation and electromagnetic wave absorption properties of novel dendrite-like NiCu alloy composite

Abstract

A novel leaf-like NiCu alloy composite was prepared by a simple solution reduction method. The dendritic hierarchical structures were composed of a main stem with several micrometers and plentiful branches. The NiCu paraffin-composite containing 40 wt% NiCu dendrite exhibits excellent microwave absorption properties. The minimal reflection loss (RL) of −21.1 dB can be observed at 14.9 GHz and the bandwidth with RL less than −10 dB reaches 3.4 GHz (13.4–16.8 GHz) with only thickness of 1.4 mm. This novel dendrite-like NiCu alloy could be used as a promising absorbing material with low thickness, high absorption and wide-band as well as easy preparation.