Sci-Fi Now: Invisibility Cloaking

When Science Fiction Becomes Reality:

by Kyle Pollard

Spending over ten years in Information technology transformed me into an absolute techno nut. For many years now the Google stream space gods have force fed me a steady diet of technology through an IV info drip one techno drop at a time. Much of the technology developments that permeate my mind would have been considered science fiction in the not too distant past. Now, in many instances, the future is now and writers of science fiction should take note of the developments to get the science “right” in their creations.

This is my first in what will be a series of Sci-Fi now blog posts featuring tech developments that will undoubtedly change the way we live and perceive reality. I am an English major Jim – not a quantum scientist – so even though I will attempt to get the facts straight, no guarantees here folks! If I get something wrong by all means chime in and set me straight!

Invisibility Cloak

Bending light around an object to make it appear invisible. Outstanding. Ten years ago this would have been considered pure sci-fi. Now, it is entirely possible to fully realize a cloaking device that can handle “three-dimensional continuous multi-directional cloaking” (see the Rochester Cloak video below).

Invisible Tanks Already in Beta Testing:

If I had to ride a tank into battle my comfort level would definitely be increased if said tank was invisible to thermal imaging, and had the science-given ability to blend into the background. Take a look at what is possible now in this video:

 

I rode a tank
Held a general’s rank
When the blitzkrieg raged
And the bodies stank
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
~The Rolling Stones: Sympathy For The Devil

Sorry for the song lyrics flashback! For some odd reason every time I think invisible tanks that old Stones’ song comes to mind.

In my opinion, the breakthrough will arrive when the technology of bending light, or more accurately projecting what is in the background to the front of an object, merges with the adaptive infra-red technology featured in the video above. When this occurs, we will truly have an invisibility that any Klingon warbird captain would be proud to deploy in battle.

Invisible Soliders a Possibility:

Invisibility Cloaking for Soldiers is also something in development:

Check this CNN news clip:

 

Now it should be stated there is some speculation if cloaking at the individual solider level does indeed currently exist. I have read that the HyperStealth CEO is demonstrating mock-ups of the stealth technology to CNN, not actual existing samples of the technology. The HyperStealth website states:

“This is a mock-up of our ‘Quantum Stealth’ (Light Bending) material with my assistant behind it. No cameras and no projectors are used. These photos are to show the Media the concept, for security issues we can not show the actual technology. With the real material – you would only see about 5% of the shadow on her and the ground as we’ve determined a 95% reduction of shadow in testing.”

Any way you shake the dice this is rather interesting. There is even a video floating around that purports to show US soldiers in Iraq using the quantum stealth camouflage. I declined to reveal it here because there is a whirlwind of controversy surrounding that video – is it real, a camera malfunction, whatever. Perhaps this one is not true at all. What is clear is that invisibility at the LPC  level (leather personnel carrier – aka boot) is apparently being investigated.

I know exactly what you are saying: Why is everything military related? Can we not develop tech without the requisite hellfire and brimstone angle? Until the world is a safer place probably not.

There are, however, many other non-military uses of invisibility cloaking under development. The non-military applications come through the repurposing of metamaterials created as a byproduct of invisibility research. A recent discovery.com article lists the Top 10 Uses for Invisibility Tech:

1. Diagnosing Disease through the use of materials that hide internal organs so doctors can focus on specific problem areas.
2. Removing tumors through the use of sound focusing metamaterial.
3. Negative index metamaterials that will harvest light as plants do and interact with electronic systems.
4. Metamaterials that provide heat insulation.
5. Metamaterials that can be used in computing devices. Instead of using electricity, these processors will use light and be exponentially more powerful than their electrical impulse cousins. A company named D-Wave is set to release in March 2015 a 1,152 qubit processor (896 qubits not active). A currently existing 128-qubit processor is valued at 10 million dollars.
6. Metamaterials used in acoustics.
7. Regulating heat control on orbiting satellites.
8. Sound bullets
9. Hiding submarines
10. Cloaking soldiers as already mentioned

Conclusion:

All this tech regarding invisibility is like manna from heaven for science fiction writers that cut their teeth on tech-based Hard SF. I feel that it’s absolutely imperative for sci-fi writers to keep abreast of what’s possible in technology, both theoretical and otherwise, to provide a robust reference point for the technical details of their stories. In a recent io9 article titled “Yes, It Matters If The Science In Your Science Fiction Story Is Accurate,” the point is made that science fiction stories are judged on their plausibility or scientific accuracy. So yes – it does indeed matter. Of course sci-fi writers will want to push the envelope further than what you have read here in this article on invisibility. It’s impossible, however, to push the envelope in tech-based sci-fi unless you know where the reference point begins.