The World's Blackest Material

If you watched the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, you may remember seeing the Hyundai Pavilion.

The building was coated with Vantablack, which at that time was the darkest material ever made.

It made the outside of the pavilion seem pitch black even on a sunny day.

Now, scientists at the Masachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have created a material that is even darker.

This new material absorbs 99.995 percent of all incoming light.

Incredibly, that is 10 times more than Vanbablack.

The engineers actually discovered the world's darkest material completely by accident.

At that time, they were trying to grow tiny carbon strings called nanotubes.

They were searching for ways to make the nanotubes better at conducting electricity.

The engineers tried growing the nanotubes on aluminum, but a layer of oxide formed on the surface, blocking the flow of electricity.

They then treated the aluminum with a combination of saltwater, oxygen, and heat to remove this layer.

The scientists expected that this process would make the nanotubes more conductive.

What they did not expect, however, was that the nanotubes would change in color.

The resulting material was darker than anything seen before.

The team's discovery can be applied to the real world in different ways.

For example, it has enormous potential for space telescopes, which need darkness to see into the deepest parts of the universe.

The material has even grabbed the attention of the art world.

MIT artist Diemut Strebe recently collaborated with the team to create a special artwork, titled "Redemption of Vanity."

A yellow diamond worth 2 million dollars was coated in the material.

In made the once brilliant gem look like a flat, black void.

 

• pitch  pɪtʃ   (일부 스포츠의) 경기장 ,  (감정활동의) 정도[강도], 정점, 최고조

• conduct  |kɒndʌkt    (특정한 활동을) 하다 ,  지휘하다 ,  (특정한 장소나 상황에서의) 행동 * conducting wire 도선  conducting electricity  전기를 전도하다

• conductive  kənˈdʌktɪv   (열·전기 등을) 전도하는, 전도성의

• oxide  |ɑːksaɪd  산화물  oxidize  |ɑːksɪdaɪz  산화시키다, 녹슬게 하다 (→reduce, reduction)

• Redemption  rɪˈdempʃn  구원, 구함  /  (주식) 상환(相換)[현금화]

• Vanity  ˈvænəti  자만심, 허영심 (→vain)   자만, 허영

• void  vɔɪd  (커다란) 빈 공간, 공동, 공허감