Metamaterials and invisibility

Metamaterials have significantly extended the range of electromagnetic properties available to device designers. An interesting application of these new materials is to the problem of cloaking, where the goal is to render an object invisible to electromagnetic radiation within a certain frequency range. Here, I review the concepts behind recently-proposed invisibility cloaks, and the way in which metamaterials can allow these designs to be realized. To cite this article: B. Wood, C. R. Physique 10 (2009).