Since the inception of metamaterials, the development of invisibility garments has risen, and invisibility cloaks from the terahertz to the near-infrared have been created. However, it is still impossible to let objects disappear under visible light. According to the report of the American Physicists Network on November 4th Beijing time, researchers at the University of St Andrews in Scotland have continuously practiced and achieved breakthroughs in the development of a supple and flexible material capable of controlling light, which is easier to use for manufacturing. Stealth woolen sweaters or other types of invisibility cloaks have taken people one step closer to the real sense of visible light invisibility.
To make cloaks work in the visible light, the fabrics face two major challenges. First, because of the shorter wavelength of visible light, it is necessary to find a very small super-atom particle to react with visible light; secondly, metamaterial fibers must be able to be detached from a sturdy surface, making this surface more flexible. Flexible structure. This ultra-flexible new material, described in detail in the New Journal of Physics, November 4, overcomes these two difficulties.
Very small super-atomic particles usually can only be made into a flat and strong surface, which makes their structure rigid, not suitable for other applications requiring flexible materials such as clothing or hyper lens. The team developed a fine technique to free the super-atom particles from the solid surface of the constituent structure. Researchers predict that stacking these particles together creates an independent, bendable material that can greatly expand their use.
Dr. Andrea Di Foko of the UK Engineering and Physical Research Council’s Career Promotion Association, who led the study, said that this new super-soft material gives us the ultimate tool to control light, and its influence will be nowhere. Not at all. Ultra-flexible materials can be used to make higher-end fibers. This experiment also proves that it is very easy to make disposable lenses that are super-soft and comfortable. The hyper-lenses of artificial vision prostheses can also be particularly soft and flexible.
If the invisible material is aimed at radar, its material structure is in the millimeter level, and it is relatively easy to manufacture, so many types of stealth fighter have already come out. However, for visible light, the manufacture of invisible materials must be completed on the nanometer scale. The difficulty is imaginable, and it also brings problems such as the hard texture mentioned in the text. Even if this "soft" invisibility material "weaves" out to cover the warships, it will be worn on the human body and it will be too wonderful. This will greatly limit its promotion and application. Therefore, if the results of St. Andrews University continue to improve, it is likely to eventually break a bottleneck in the field.
To make cloaks work in the visible light, the fabrics face two major challenges. First, because of the shorter wavelength of visible light, it is necessary to find a very small super-atom particle to react with visible light; secondly, metamaterial fibers must be able to be detached from a sturdy surface, making this surface more flexible. Flexible structure. This ultra-flexible new material, described in detail in the New Journal of Physics, November 4, overcomes these two difficulties.
Very small super-atomic particles usually can only be made into a flat and strong surface, which makes their structure rigid, not suitable for other applications requiring flexible materials such as clothing or hyper lens. The team developed a fine technique to free the super-atom particles from the solid surface of the constituent structure. Researchers predict that stacking these particles together creates an independent, bendable material that can greatly expand their use.
Dr. Andrea Di Foko of the UK Engineering and Physical Research Council’s Career Promotion Association, who led the study, said that this new super-soft material gives us the ultimate tool to control light, and its influence will be nowhere. Not at all. Ultra-flexible materials can be used to make higher-end fibers. This experiment also proves that it is very easy to make disposable lenses that are super-soft and comfortable. The hyper-lenses of artificial vision prostheses can also be particularly soft and flexible.
If the invisible material is aimed at radar, its material structure is in the millimeter level, and it is relatively easy to manufacture, so many types of stealth fighter have already come out. However, for visible light, the manufacture of invisible materials must be completed on the nanometer scale. The difficulty is imaginable, and it also brings problems such as the hard texture mentioned in the text. Even if this "soft" invisibility material "weaves" out to cover the warships, it will be worn on the human body and it will be too wonderful. This will greatly limit its promotion and application. Therefore, if the results of St. Andrews University continue to improve, it is likely to eventually break a bottleneck in the field.