![]() ![]() The technology is surprisingly straightforward – two diverging lenses are arranged between two converging lenses, whereby light is concentrated as a thin beam between the diverging lenses, creating a doughnut shaped region of invisibility. In 2014, researchers at the University of Rochester constructed a device made of four lenses, the first of which can boast successful cloaking of small objects in three-dimensional space. To cloak an object under visible light, refraction is still utilised but on a much larger scale. ![]() These inventions are the initial step to concealing objects in the visible light spectrum, as visible light has a much shorter wavelength in comparison, thus exhibiting a smaller degree of refraction. Fast forwarding six years, Korean researchers at Yonsei University created a 10 mm thick elastic cloak with the claim that any haphazardly shaped object can be hidden from broadband microwave detection, bringing the device closer to practical application. The device was specifically tuned to minimize distortion of microwaves caused by the object, creating interference patterns which cancel each other out. Composed of copper and fibre glass, the material has a unique interaction against the planar electromagnetic field. In 2006, Duke University researchers successfully hid an object from microwave detection by using a material that can bend electrons. To circumvent this, one way would be to bend light with the aid of ‘smart’ metamaterials, which are able to marginally alter the path of light. ![]() However, most objects are opaque, which blocks light from penetrating through. What we currently understand is that an object appears to be ‘invisible’ when light is able to pass through the space that the object in question occupies, at least in the perspective of the observer. In fact, invisibility has been researched for quite some time now, with several inventions coming incredibly close to fruition. Unfortunately, us ‘muggles’ are just not blessed with the magical gene, but the good news is that we can strive to understand and invent technology inches away from the supernatural, thanks to a little thing called science. If only being invisible was as easy as hiding under a nifty cloaking device bequeathed from your father who happened to dabble in wizarding mischief in his younger days. ![]()
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