Camouflage device makes objects undetectable for some radars

Researcher Amanda D. Hanford of the Pennsylvania State University has taken the first steps to make acoustic covers capable of camouflaging objects. According to a report written by the researchers, Hanford and his team began designing a metamaterial that could allow sound waves to bend around the object as if it were not there. Metamaterials commonly exhibit extraordinary properties not found in nature, such as negative density. To function, the unit cell - the smallest component of the metamaterial - must be less than the acoustic wavelength of the study.

"These materials seem like a totally abstract concept, but mathematics is showing us that these properties are possible. So we are working to open the floodgates to see what we can create, " said the researcher.

Tests showed that sound waves did not reflect or circumvent the material, meaning that objects would be invisible when sonaring. To date, most acoustic metamaterials had been designed to deflect sound waves in the air. Hanford decided to take this work one step further and accept the scientific challenge of trying the same underwater.

These results show potential to contribute to real-world applications such as acoustic materials to dampen sound and appear invisible underwater. However, this technology is still in its early stages and the material does not make objects invisible, but only very difficult to detect in underwater situations.

It may be that in the near future the ship's captains shout to the crew: "Activate the camouflage device", as if playing hide and seek with gossip of dubious character.

Camouflage device makes objects undetectable for some radar via TecMundo