Illusion Cloak Makes One Object Look Like Another

KentuckyFC writes "Metamaterials are synthetic substances that can steer light in any way imaginable. Their most famous incarnation is in invisibility cloaks which work by steering light around a region of space making any object inside that region invisible. But invisibility is just the start. A team of physicists in Hong Kong (the same guys who recently worked out how to cloak objects at a distance) have worked out how to create a cloak that makes one object look like another. Instead of steering light to make a region of space look empty, the illusion cloak manipulates light in a way that makes a region of space look as if it contains a specific object. So any object within that region of space, a mouse say, takes on the appearance of an elephant."

Comments

Re:Doesnt sound like much?

[Red Flayer]

Ah, but if we're going to imagine making a tank look like a heavy truck, or a rocket launcher looking like a stack of pipes... why not just imagine world peace?

We're about as close to achieving a usable cloak of illusion as we are to achieving world piece...

ugg

[Dyinobal]

I hate all these cloaking articles they give really great 'examples' of what could be done with such technology but the actual news is much more mundane. In fact from the small freaking article it seems they have a math proof probably not even a prototype yet.

Re:That's some sweet stuff

[maharb]

Still won't change the pleasure your new elephant can give.

Re:Doesnt sound like much?

[drinkypoo]

Seems to me like you could just make a small tank look like a heavy truck by hanging some shit on it. Ditto for the rocket launcher situation.

Re:Doesnt sound like much?

[PopeRatzo]

..or a rocket launcher to look like a stack of pipes on satellite photos.

Or vice versa.

It's made out of unobtanium

[TomGreenhaw]

Acording to the article, "The trick is to create a material in which the permittivity and permeability are complementary to the blah, blah, blah" In other words the creation of a material that doesn't (or cannot in our universe) exist. IMHO, a work of science fiction expressed in the language of mathematics.