Utilizing thermal emission for power generation and global cooling

The thermal spectra of hot and cool bodies are well-known and described by Planck’s law for blackbody emission. However, for many modern technologies and applications, it is desirable to have deviations from this law to achieve directional or wavelength-controlled emission. In this talk, we will discuss the control of thermal emission for various applications. We will first discuss our work on alternative power generation concepts to produce power after sunset by optically coupling to deep space. Then, we will describe an alternative geoengineering strategy to increase the Earth's radiative heat emission, potentially stabilizing or cooling the planet to help mitigate climate change by increasing the earth’s thermal emission by 1 W/m2.