[Sci/Tech] Researchers create gold aluminum, black platinum, blue silver

[The Helper]

Using a tabletop laser, a University of Rochester optical scientist has turned pure aluminum, gold. And blue. And gray. And many other colors. And it works for every metal tested, including platinum, titanium, tungsten, silver, and gold.

Chunlei Guo, the researcher who a year ago used intense laser light to alter the properties of a variety of metals to render them pitch black, has pushed the same process further in a paper in today’s Applied Physics Letters. He now believes it’s possible to alter the properties of any metal to turn it any color—even multi-colored iridescence like a butterfly’s wings.

Since the process changes the intrinsic surface properties of the metal itself and is not just a coating, the color won’t fade or peel, says Guo, associate professor of optics at the Institute of Optics at the University of Rochester. He suggests the possibilities are endless—a cycle factory using a single laser to produce bicycles of different colors; etching a full-color photograph of a family into the refrigerator door; or proposing with a gold engagement ring that matches your fiancée’s blue eyes.

Read more about the discovery here.

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Colored metals. What will they come up with next?

 

[UnknowVector]

I wonder if they can work this with other materials? Probably not crystals, but maybe something amorphous like raw carbon?

 

[Wiseman_2]

Colored metals. What will they come up with next?

A way to release the potential energy of a Mars Bar all at the same time?
That would mean a single Mars Bar would have 100 times more explosive potential than a stick of dynamite (it already does, but there's no way to make it explode).

Until someone comes up with that sort of technology, I will only be slightly amazed by such discoveries as this

 

[Asehujiko]

or proposing with a gold engagement ring that matches your fiancée’s blue eyes.

The main reason people like gold is because it has a pretty color. If you can make any color material you want, i'd say steel is far more durable and unless you are proposing to a chemist, they won't know the difference.

 

[esb]

Nice... Just a matter of days before we have Glow-In-The-Dark Bling Bling.

 

[hell_knight]

If this is used gold jewerley and such will be a LOT less expensive cause they can subistute it with another metal. nice find

 

[Varine]

Why doesn't it change back after a while?

I see some scams coming along here.... Signs will pop up everywhere for cheap gold and silvers. Imagine... I'm going to by a steel crown and say it's gold.

 

[esb]

This would be considered Synthetic Gold, and it's a lot cheaper than authentic gold.

 

[Seb!]

No way some scammers gunna get there hands on a 500k dollar Laser Colorer

 

[Varine]

That doesn't mean that there won't be people selling it like it's real gold. People do now, so it'll be a lot easier when there's not the chance of paint or whatever coming off.

And they don't need to get the laser, they just have to buy some gold-looking aluminum and then pretend they stole it or something and sell it all for a few hundred dollars. A lot of people aren't going to be looking at the quality if someone runs over and pretends like he stole it and needs to get rid of it all and is selling to them for cheap. Being a con artist wouldn't be a bad job, actually....

 

[esb]

It would be much better if they sold it legally, as in tell them it's fake. They keep their business, it's legal, they make money, etc.

 

[The Helper]

Cubic Zirconia did not kill Diamonds.

 

[Varine]

Yeah, but there are still con artists. If you can sell the gold-color steel for a little more than normal steel, then they'll be making a lot less than if they just sell it under the radar for a lot more.

 

[undeadorcjerk]

My mind just had an interesting thought.... this could be used to make some really kickass metal works. Like swords. Take some steel, color it to someone's disire and you will have fan boys dying from excitement in the street.


*the tick in my mind was...."Hmmm, black bladed sword? cool"*