'Cloaking device' idea proposed
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The cloaking devices that are used to render spacecraft invisible in Star Trek might just work in reality, two mathematicians have claimed.
They have outlined their concept in a research paper published in one of the UK Royal Society's scientific journals.
Nicolae Nicorovici and Graeme Milton propose that placing certain objects close to a material called a superlens could make them appear to vanish.
It would rely on an effect known as 'anomalous localised resonance'.
If the speck of dust is close enough it induces a very aggressive response in the cloaking material
Professor Sir John Pendry, Imperial College London
However, the authors have so far only done the maths to verify that the concept could work. Building such a device would undoubtedly pose a significant challenge.
The cloaking devices that are used to render spacecraft invisible in Star Trek might just work in reality, two mathematicians have claimed.They have outlined their concept in a research paper published in one of the UK Royal Society's scientific journals.
Nicolae Nicorovici and Graeme Milton propose that placing certain objects close to a material called a superlens could make them appear to vanish.
It would rely on an effect known as 'anomalous localised resonance'.
If the speck of dust is close enough it induces a very aggressive response in the cloaking material
Professor Sir John Pendry, Imperial College London
However, the authors have so far only done the maths to verify that the concept could work. Building such a device would undoubtedly pose a significant challenge.
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