Gamers,
So how many times have you played a game where you've been saved at the last minute by some form of invisibility technology? Whether it's Crysis' CryNet Nanosuit, Halo's Arbiter in the Halo 2 Campaign or even just Zero's "Decoy" ability in the second Borderlands game I'm guessing most of us have experienced this ability at some point while indulging in our hobby. Have you ever wondered though; just how far away is this?
Well, apparently it may be closer than we've realised with promise on the horizon thanks to researchers from the University of California, San Diego who've designed a super-thin sheet of materials that can hide 3-D objects, including their shadow.
This isn't the first attempt or even advance in this field, with articles over the years always claiming that invisibility is right around the corner, but it is another important step as other previous attempt have hinged on certain lighting conditions, larger machinery or people being positioned in just the correct place; defeating the purpose of the technology.
To quote the IEEE Spectrum report on the matter:
"The cloak is very thin—only about a tenth the size of the wavelength of the photons it’s scattering—and lossless, so there’s no dimming to give away the presence of the cloak. The scientists achieved this by using a new design and different materials. Instead of a periodic structure of metal, which absorbs light, they use two dielectric materials, a Teflon substrate studded with cylinders made of a ceramic. The ceramic has a high refractive index, and the Teflon has a low refractive index. When combined, they create a metamaterial, capable of bending light in unusual ways."
The researchers next aim it to create this material beyond computer modelling into something that can be shown to have practical applications, so although admittedly a long way off, maybe those invisible suits of power armour aren't so implausible after all. I for one relish the idea of the cloak, but what about you? what will you do with such power readily available, does the idea of not being able to trust your eyes anymore cause you concern? Let us know in the comments, and as always...Gamers,
Let's Play
