Few things in this world will incite as much fear as the moment you drop your precious cellphone to the floor. You’re filled with so much dread that you’re afraid to even turn it over. You imagine the worst: an entirely shattered glass which turns your home screen into a kaleidoscope. You slowly reach for it, praying with more sincerity than the most pious sages.
Now, whether the phone is actually damaged or not is an entirely different matter. But what if you could get rid of this fear entirely? What if you knew that somehow, your screen would heal itself? That would be blissful, wouldn’t it?
Inspired by the incredible healing powers of Wolverine, scientists have created a phone screen material that can ‘heal’ itself from all kinds of cuts and scratches. Chao Wang, a chemist who was leading the research effort said,Â
“After they tore the material in half, it automatically stitched itself back together in under 24 hours.”
In fact, Wang “developed an interest in self-healing materials because of his lifelong love of Wolverine, the comic book character who has the ability to self-heal.”Â
Moreover, the material can stretch up to 50 times its original length and features a special kind of bond called the ion-dipole interaction.
So whenever the material breaks or gets a scratch, the molecules attract each other and get back together, thus healing the inflicted ‘wound’.
And before you think this is just a concept, this is what Chao Wang has to say.
“Within three years, more self-healing products will go to market and change our everyday life.”
Three years doesn’t seem too long now, does it? By 2020, we’ll all be roaming around with self-healing phones casually placed in our back pockets.
Wonder what this means for all those bulletproof phone cover makers… hmm.
As a bonus, here’s a time-lapse video uploaded by the University of California, showcasing the material’s healing abilities:
Wolverine inspired phones, now that’s a future I’m looking forward to.
Source: Business Insider, Mashable