Invisible Cloak

Scientists from US Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed an ultra thin invisibility cloak that can conceal tiny objects from detection in visible light. According to researchers, the cloak, although microscopic could in the near future be used to conceal macroscopic objects as well by applying the same principles on a larger scale.

The ‘skin cloak’ which is 80 nanometres thick works with brick like blocks of gold nanonantennas. The cloak was wrapped around a 3-D object arbitrarily shaped with multiple dents and bumps that was about the size of a few biological cells. The surface of the cloak was metaengineered to re-route light waves to make the object invisible. The cloak can be turned on or off by switching the polarization of nanoantennas.

According to Xiang Zhang, lead author of the project, the cloak may take anywhere between 5 and 10 years to find applications in practical use. The cloak in the near future could find applications with the military. The research was published in the journal Science.