Scientists have demonstrated an "ultra-thin invisibility skin cloak" that can be used to hide objects by guiding light around them.
"The fact that we can make a curved surface appear flat also means that we can make it look like anything else," co-lead author Xingjie Ni, a professor of electrical engineering at Pennsylvania State University, told Inforum. "We can also make a flat surface appear curved."
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Researchers say that the cloak is comprised of microscopic gold "nanoantennas" which are 80 nanometres thick. The substance can wrap around a three-dimensional object scattering light that approaches it and obscuring it completely.
The cloak has so far been used to hide small objects, but the team behind the invention believes that it will be able to make larger objects disappear too.
"We do not see fundamental roadblocks. But much more work needs to be done," said Xiang Zhang, another author of the study and professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
According to Zhang, the invention could have military applications, such as making vehicles, aircraft and soldiers "invisible", but it could also be used in other unexpected ways.
"One application might be in cosmetics," he told The Guardian. "You can imagine if someone has a fat belly, like me, and wants to look nice, he could put this layer on and it will look like a six pack."
Still, people hoping to emulate their hero Harry Potter will have to wait a few more years before they can have an invisibility cloak. According to Zhang the technology will take between five and 10 years to perfect.
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