Fig. 3: Photothermal effect and thermal conductivity of membranes.

a UV-vis-NIR absorption spectra of the membranes. b The corresponding thermal conductivities. Error bars indicate the standard deviations estimated from three times measurements. c Surface temperature profiles as a function of time and (d) the corresponding IR thermal images. e Pore sizes distribution. f Typical optical surface profile of the PM-PVDF. g Schematic illustration of the PM-PVDF with favorable light trapping and thermal resistance. The hierarchical topology maximizes the sunlight harvesting by the light trapping effect, and meanwhile, the trapped air pockets in the membrane serve as thermal resistance to alleviate thermal conduction through the membrane and achieve efficient solar utilization. Source data are provided as a Source Data file.