Light-powered magnetic levitation could create 'new class' of solar energy

In a breakthrough that could one day revolutionize transportation and electricity generation, scientists at the University in Kanagawa in Japan demonstrated this month a disc that spins at over 200 rotations per minute when placed over a magnet in direct sunlight, saying the discovery could help create a wholly "new class" of solar energy.

Professor Jiro Abe and Dr. Masayuki Kobayashi presented their discovery in the December issue of Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Speaking a reporter with Phys.org, Abe said their research represents "the first time in the world" that humans have been able to achieve "real-time motion control" of inanimate objects without individual parts of the machine coming into direct contact.

The study goes on to explain that it works because the light slightly changes the temperature of the graphite, which causes subtle fluctuations in the material's "magnetic susceptibility."

Video of the discovery published to YouTube earlier this month showed scientists moving a tiny disc over an array of small magnets by firing a laser at it. Additional footage also featured that same disc levitating over a single magnet, rapidly spinning in place when placed under direct sunlight.

"Because this technique is very simple and fundamental, it is expected to apply to various daily living techniques, such as transportation systems and amusement, as well as photo-actuators and light energy conversion systems," Abe reportedly said.

It is unclear how long such a discovery will take to be implemented into a practical mass-transportation system, if ever. It remains questionable if the discovery will lend itself to a device that generates enough electricity to become self-sustaining.

This video was published to YouTube on December 19, 2012.

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Photo: Shutterstock.com, all rights reserved. Updated from an original version to fix a misspelling.