How close are we to creating an invisibility cloak?

Harry Potter has an invisibility cloak. For some that sounds like a dream come true, for others a complete nightmare. But how close are we to creating one? The answer is that an invisibility cloak for a human might never be feasible. But technology that comes very close is already under development.

Research teams are looking at applications that inevitably include the defence industry. The University of California-San Diego has already created invisible drones.

Non-military projects include giving surgeons see-through hands to help them in complex operations and making motoring safer by giving drivers the ability to see through the blind-spots in their cars.

The technology behind such applications is complex but this video from the American Chemical Society gives a clear guide for beginners.

Professor Che Ting Chan of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is one of the World Economic Forum’s Young Scientists 2014. Speaking at the Annual Meeting of the New Champions, he said this kind of technology has uses that go way beyond Harry Potter.

Invisibility cloak technology is coming on by leaps and bounds and could well be the next big disruptor in materials.

Author: Jenny Soffel is website editor at the World Economic Forum

Image: Singapore researcher demonstrates invisibility cloak at Nanyang University of Singapore. REUTERS/Edgar Sue