3 ms·
Controlled levitation of nanostructured thin films
- jbob2000 6y agoThey're using light to heat the bottom of a thin material. Bottom of material heats up, heats up the air underneath the material, hot air expands and makes it float. Controlling the strength of the light controls how much heat the disc generates and thus controls its height. Heating one side of the disc causes it to heat unevenly and move in the opposite direction. Do I have that right? Hot air rises, so if you stick something light on the plume of hot air, it will also rise? I think birds discovered this millions of years ago.
- Gatsky 6y agoThe temperature of the material is the same on the top and bottom (less than 0.1K difference they say). The mechanism is rather that the air molecules are entrapped in the nanotube coated under surface and heat up more, so depart with a higher velocity than the upper surface. This creates lift. Quite a cool effect, reminiscent of an army of Laplace's demons kicking air molecules off the bottom of the surface to make it fly.
- eximius 6y ago> allowing payloads of up to 10 milligrams for sunlight-powered low-cost microflyers at altitudes of 50 to 100 km. Interesting, but as-yet impractical.
- jhayward 6y agoWelcome to the product space made famous by the disk drive industry for "disruptive innovation".
- mleonhard 6y agoA long string of the disks could lift larger payloads. I imagine a feather-like structure with strips of film stretched between inflated ribs.
- nelsonmandela 6y agoThis is cool I wonder if it could be used as a sort of permanent radar chaff if coated with aluminium or something