How deep can black be? Let's check. The British company created the substance, which is the blackest material in the world and is called it - vantablack. Until this time, such a species was not known to anyone. This invention once and for all changed people's view of our universe. What kind of material is this? What are its properties? Where can I use it? This mysterious and unique invention will be discussed in the article.
Discovery story
Attempts to create an absolute black substance have been undertaken by scientists from around the world repeatedly. The first such material was presented to the public in 2008. It reflected 0.045 waves of the light spectrum. In July 2014, scientists from the UK presented the blackest material in the world - vantablack, whose light reflectance was 0.036.
Composition
The newly discovered substance is capable of absorbing 99.9% of light, radio waves and microwaves. Studies of the properties and characteristics of Vantablack were carried out by scientists from the UK under the leadership of Jenson Ben.
Wantablack is made from a combination of carbon nanotubes. What does it mean? If human hair is divided into 10 thousand layers, one of them is the size of one such carbon nanotube. The general composition of the substance can be represented in the form of a field overgrown with grass, a trapped particle of light bounces from one blade of grass to another. These blades of grass absorb light, reflecting only a small part of it.
The technology for creating such tubes is not new, but Jenson and his team managed to find innovative ways to use them. They invented a way to connect them with materials that are used in modern satellites and telescopes. The most common such material in everyday life is aluminum foil.
Using Wantablake in telescopes and satellites will help to make pictures of the Universe and the globe clearer than they were before. The fact is that there is scattered light inside the device, which leads to an increase in noise, as a result of which pictures are not obtained clear. Using the blackest material inside the telescope to cover partitions and diaphragm plates will reduce light scattering. This will improve the quality of satellite images.
From the point of view of physical science, it is impossible to create a material that can absorb 100% of the light. Therefore, the invention of Vantablack (the blackest material on the planet) can be safely called a breakthrough in science on the brink of science fiction.
Process of creation
The developers did not disclose detailed information about the process of creating the blackest material. It is only known that for the base nanotubes were taken, which are grown at a temperature of more than 430 º in a special laboratory chamber. The material consists of a million of such fragments, the thickness of which is 20 nanometers (about 1 billion nanotubes are contained in 1 cm 2 of vantablack). Light falling between the tubes is reflected between them and does not have the ability to go outside, which creates the effect of absolute blackness. The same process can be observed if you imagine that you are walking through a forest in which the height of the trees is 3-4 km. In such a place, the lower tiers will never see sunlight.
Experiments were conducted with the new blackest material in the world. An aluminum disk was lowered onto the surface of the water, which did not sink, and remained completely dry when it was pulled out of the liquid. This is because the material has a low surface energy. This allows him to stay on the surface.
Specifications
So, what is the blackest material currently existing in the world? Of course, this is a one-stop. Currently, scientists have improved the properties of this material. The new substance was called Vantablack 2. It is still impossible to determine its light reflection coefficient, since there are no such devices yet, but it is close to zero.
Experts have clearly demonstrated the optical properties of the substance. This substance with an unusual coating creates the illusion of a bottomless void. Light falling into the region of the black body of matter disappears from the field of view. Scientists explain this phenomenon by the fact that scattering of photons of light occurs between countless nanotubes, particles of light are reflected an incredible number of times and are gradually absorbed by the elements of the material.
Unique features
The unique features of the black material itself is that in addition to the light spectrum, ultraviolet, infrared and electromagnetic waves are absorbed.
But this does not end with his uniqueness; he possesses the following indicators and characteristics:
- extreme hydrophobicity;
- ability to stay on water;
- unique strength (10 times higher than steel);
- high degree of thermal conductivity (7.5 times higher than that of copper);
- high resistance to temperature extremes, as well as to extremely low and high temperatures.
Human eye reaction to material
The reaction of the human eye to the blackest material on earth turned out to be interesting to scientists. Due to the fact that the reflected light is practically absent, the brain perceives this not as a black object, but as a hole in a black hole or abyss, as a two-dimensional blackness. What does it mean? A person who looks at the Vantablack does not perceive it as something material. His brain reports that this is some kind of failure or hole.
This effect of the material interested scientists, but most of all it aroused the interest of artists and sculptors, who stated that this substance would look very impressive when depicting space.
Possible applications
Vantablack and Vantablack 2 are unique substances that have no analogues in the world. They are considered as promising material that can be applied in many areas of human activity.
- The military industry. It can act as camouflage material, which will not be equal. The properties of this substance are just a find for the military. Any kind of equipment can be hidden from the eyes of the enemy with the help of protective screens made using the latest technology. Of course, scientists do not fully voice the prospects and possibilities for using this material in military affairs, citing its high cost.
- Consumer sphere. Many world-famous designers are interested in new ultra-high-quality material. They predict fashion for clothes and jewelry coated with it. How much this will be fashionable and in demand remains to be seen. But it is definitely clear that it will be elegant and not cheap. At present, fashion designers and designers have created hoodies that are covered with a wantablack, of course the cost of these models is very high, and the conditions for wearing it have not yet been fully clarified.
- Art. Artists and sculptors showed excessive interest in the new material. The first who became interested in him was Kapoor Anish. He also became the first sculptor who received the right to use this unique material in his works. The use of Vantablack has become a fundamentally new and interesting direction in contemporary art.
- Science and technology. The properties of this material allow it to be used to create high-precision optical devices that can be used both on the ground and in space. It can help improve telescopes designed to observe distant objects: black holes, stars. The material can cover the supersensitive elements of microscopic electromechanical and electronic devices.
Instead of a conclusion
Of course, this is not the whole spectrum of all possible applications of the vantablack. Scientists continue to study its properties. However, already now we can confidently say that this is a breakthrough in science of a fantastic scale, which will forever change our understanding of the Earth and space.