New Invisibility Cloak Hides Objects from Sense of Touch

Invisibility cloaks have become a large area of research in recent years. More specifically, they've been developed to fool various senses, hiding light, heat or sound. Now, scientists may have discovered a way to create an invisibility cloak that hides an object from the sense of touch.

The new invisibility cloak is based on a so-called metameterial that consists of a polymer. Its major properties are determined by the special structure, which is a crystalline material structured with sub-micrometer accuracy. It consists of needle-shaped cones, whose tips meet. The size of the contact point is calculated precisely in order to reach the mechanical properties that are desired. In this way, a structure is created that cannot be felt by a finger.

"We build the structure around the object to be hidden. In this structure, strength depends on the location in a defined way," said Tiemo Buckmann, one of the researchers, in a news release. "The precision of the components combined with the size of the complete arrangement was one of the big obstacles to the development of the mechanical invisibility cloak."

So what does the cloak itself look it? It consists of a harder cylinder that's inserted into the bottom layer. Any objects that need to be hidden can be put into this cavity. Then, the metamaterial structure directs of the forces of the touching finger so that the cylinder is hidden completely.

Although this invisibility cloak represents pure physical fundament research, it could pave the way for other studies. This cloak could result in the production of materials with freely selectable mechanical properties, such as very thin, light, and still comfortable camping mattresses or carpets hiding cables and pipelines below.

The findings reveal that invisibility cloaks aren't just for fooling the eye. They can also be used to fool the sense of touch.

The findings are published in the journal Nature Communications.