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Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Is a practical cloaking device prototype possible within the next 20 years?
« on: 03/09/2008 23:22:46 »
Hi,
Do you think in our lifetime we may see the production of a practical cloaking device prototype? A cloaking device that may be as large as one to hide a Klingon bird of prey, or as small as Harry Potter's invisibility cloak? I understand there have been some advances in pursuing this goal in the last couple of years. Being someone with almost a complete lack of background in optics, I certainly appreciate people knowledgeable on this topic to "shed some light" on it. I'm interested to get some discussion how likely a cloaking device is realizable, what are the current physical limitations, etc.
I also came across an interesting article today:
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn14659-anticloak-gives-vision-to-the-invisible.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news3_head_dn14659
It proposes a new theory of "anti-cloaking device." Namely, the theory of a cloaking device blocks out all the lights that shine upon some object, rendering it invisible. This also would mean that the object would be in total darkness and would not be able to see outside either. That would limit the applicability of the cloaking device.
This article proposes a theoretical approach that allows some light to go through the cloaking device in a smart way that, on one hand, maintains the invisibility of the object, and on the other hand, allows the object to see the outside world as well.
I find this article interesting, and I never thought about this "anti-cloaking" idea before. I would like get some feedback on this forum to enlighten myself on this subject.
Thanks.
Do you think in our lifetime we may see the production of a practical cloaking device prototype? A cloaking device that may be as large as one to hide a Klingon bird of prey, or as small as Harry Potter's invisibility cloak? I understand there have been some advances in pursuing this goal in the last couple of years. Being someone with almost a complete lack of background in optics, I certainly appreciate people knowledgeable on this topic to "shed some light" on it. I'm interested to get some discussion how likely a cloaking device is realizable, what are the current physical limitations, etc.
I also came across an interesting article today:
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn14659-anticloak-gives-vision-to-the-invisible.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news3_head_dn14659
It proposes a new theory of "anti-cloaking device." Namely, the theory of a cloaking device blocks out all the lights that shine upon some object, rendering it invisible. This also would mean that the object would be in total darkness and would not be able to see outside either. That would limit the applicability of the cloaking device.
This article proposes a theoretical approach that allows some light to go through the cloaking device in a smart way that, on one hand, maintains the invisibility of the object, and on the other hand, allows the object to see the outside world as well.
I find this article interesting, and I never thought about this "anti-cloaking" idea before. I would like get some feedback on this forum to enlighten myself on this subject.
Thanks.