Thursday, January 22, 2009

Invisibility cloak is closer to reality

This time it's not another camera/projection technology applied to clothing just to try and camouflage a person. This is a step closer to pseudo-invisibility, you know, kind of like Invisible Woman has the ability to bend and manipulate light to render herself and others invisible.

Scientists from Duke University have come up with a new type of device that is able to cloak an object from visible light. The device is made from a light-bending composite material that can detour electromagnetic waves around an object and reconnect them on the other side. That creates an effect similar to a distant mirage you'd see hovering above a road on a hot day.

But don't get your hopes up just now as this research is still far away from producing a cloaking cape as Harry Potter's. The foreseeable applications for this kind of technology will focus on eliminating obstructions to improve wireless communications or acoustic cloaks that could serve as protective shields, preventing the penetration of vibrations, sound, or seismic waves.

Source: CNet

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