The physics of invisibility : a story of light and deception / Martin Beech.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Of all things visible and invisible -- A very brief history of light -- Mirror tricks, the art of cloaking and seeing the impossible -- Maxwell's marvelous waves -- The metamaterial revolution -- Afterword -- Appendix.

"Arthur C. Clarke famously wrote that, 'any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.' These words most certainly ring true with respect to invisibility cloaking devices. At work is the magic of science, of course. The technology to make an object simply disappear from view is now a reality. There is both great fear and great desire in the thought of invisibility. Indeed, for thousands of years, authors have grappled with the idea. Power, devilry, secrecy, ethical dilemma, and moral corruption - invisibility has it all. And yet, our waking world is full of familiar invisible phenomena. Electricity flowing along a metal wire, the gravity that keeps us grounded, the air we breathe, the bacteria and viruses that make us ill, the X-rays that reveal our broken bones - all are invisible to our eyes. They surround and envelop us, and we don't give them a second thought. Nature long ago learned how to play tricks with light rays, enriching the world with rainbows, mirages, and animal camouflage. The new physics of invisibility simply aims to take these tricks of nature a few steps further. Indeed, by learning what light is and how it interacts with matter, physicists have begun to take control of light - with metamaterials, which, man made, can be precisely melded, warped, twisted, transformed, and even time-edited. In this book the ancient and modern story of light and invisibility is revealed, from early Greek speculations to the remarkable works of James Clerk Maxwell. The new and burgeoning field of transformation optics is also explored, and the story behind the development of the first fully functional invisibility cloak is charted"--P. [4] of cover.

Martin Beech is a Professor of Astronomy at Campion College, the University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada. He has written numerous research articles on topics ranging from meteor physics, Martian meteories, stellar structure and evolution, cosmology, the history of science and mathematical number theory. He lives in Regina with more than visible wife, a brother-in-law, five dogs (a.k.a The Five Pugs of the Apocalypse) and three cats - there are times when he certainly wishes he could be invisible.