Black is the new black in science

U.S. researchers said on Tuesday they have made the darkest material on Earth, a substance so black it absorbs more than 99.9 percent of light.

Made from tiny tubes of carbon standing on end, this material is almost 30 times darker than a carbon substance used by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology as the current benchmark of blackness.

And the material is close to the long-sought ideal black, which could absorb all colours of light and reflect none.



The substance has a total reflective index of 0.045 percent - which is more than three times darker than the nickel-phosphorous alloy that now holds the record as the world's darkest material.

The researchers are seeking a world's darkest material designation by Guinness World Records. But their work will likely yield more than just bragging rights.

Ajayan said the material could be used in solar energy conversion. "You could think of a material that basically collects all the light that falls into it," he said.