ScienceDaily (Oct. 12, 2012) — A new approach that allows objects to become "invisible" has now been applied to an entirely different area: letting particles "hide" from passing electrons, which could lead to more efficient thermoelectric devices and new kinds of electronics.
Normally, electrons travel through a material in a way that is similar to the motion of electromagnetic waves, including light; their behavior can be described by wave equations. That led the MIT researchers to the idea of harnessing the cloaking mechanisms developed to shield objects from view -- but applying it to the movement of electrons, which is key to electronic and thermoelectric devices.
Previous work on cloaking objects from view has relied on so-called metamaterials made of artificial materials with unusual properties. The composite structures used for cloaking cause light beams to bend around an object and then meet on the other side, resuming their original path -- making the object appear invisible.