Science & Health

These Materials Could Make Science Fiction a Reality

Metamaterials, which could improve smartphones and change how we use other technology, allow scientists to control light waves in new ways.

By John Markoff, April 27, 2021

James Yang

Imagine operating a computer by moving your hands in the air as Tony Stark does in “Iron Man.”

Or using a smartphone to magnify an object as does the device that Harrison Ford’s character uses in “Blade Runner.”

Or a next-generation video meeting where augmented reality glasses make it possible to view 3D avatars. Or a generation of autonomous vehicles capable of driving safely in city traffic.

These advances and a host of others on the horizon could happen because of metamaterials, making it possible to control beams of light with the same ease that computer chips control electricity.

Source: These Materials Could Make Science Fiction a Reality