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The present invention generally relates to specific combinations of active particles, forming a powder, that may be combined with carrier materials such as resins to produce fibers for textiles, films, coatings, and/or protective or insulating materials. The specific mixture of particles and materia

The present invention generally relates to specific combinations of active particles, forming a powder, that may be combined with carrier materials such as resins to produce fibers for textiles, films, coatings, and/or protective or insulating materials. The specific mixture of particles and materials may be carefully engineered to impart unique and valuable properties to end products including integration with optical energies, heat, and other electromagnetic energies. Resultant compositions may interact with light in the visible spectrum and optical and electromagnetic energy beyond the visible spectrum.

대표청구항 ▼

We claim: 1. An active material system, comprising: optically active particles responsive to light due to an interaction of electromagnetic energy and electric fields; and a carrier material combined with the optically active particles for retaining the particles and forming an end material; wherei

We claim: 1. An active material system, comprising: optically active particles responsive to light due to an interaction of electromagnetic energy and electric fields; and a carrier material combined with the optically active particles for retaining the particles and forming an end material; wherein when the electromagnetic energy and the electric fields interact with the end material, the end material absorbs light of a particular wavelength, re-emits the light at different selected wavelengths and attenuates the light differently at different wavelengths to produce a filter with a desired wavelength distribution. 2. The active material system as recited in claim 1, wherein the optically active particles comprise a plurality of different particle types, the different particle types having staggered refractive indices with respect to each other to generate an overlapping series of passbands that encompass the desired wavelength distribution. 3. The active material system as recited in claim 2, wherein each of the different particle types are reduced to a particular size and shape to generate a particular wavelength passband. 4. The active material system as recited in claim 3, wherein the size of the optically active particles is approximately the size of the wavelength of the light to be passed. 5. The active material system as recited in claim 1, the optically active particles comprising: aluminum oxide for bandshifting the wavelengths of received light; silicon dioxide for shortening the wavelengths of the received light; and titanium dioxide for reflecting, absorbing and scattering the received light. 6. The active material system as recited in claim 5, the aluminum oxide being reduced in size to scallop shaped particles of about 1.4 microns or smaller. 7. The active material system as recited in claim 5, the silicon dioxide being reduced in size to substantially spherical shaped particles of about 1.5 microns or smaller. 8. The active material system as recited in claim 5, the titanium dioxide being reduced in size to triangular shaped particles with rounded edges of about 2 microns or smaller. 9. The active material system as recited in claim 5, the titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide having a dry weight ratio of about 10:10:2, respectively. 10. The active material system as recited in claim 5, the titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide comprising about 1-2% of a total weight of the active material system. 11. The active material system as recited in claim 1, the carrier material for encasing and acting as a lensing medium for the optically active particles. 12. The active material system as recited in claim 1, wherein the active material forms a fiber usable in textiles. 13. A method of making an end material that alters the wavelength of received light, comprising: selecting optically active particles responsive to light due to an interaction of electromagnetic energy and electric fields; and suspending the selected optically active particles in a carrier material to form the end material; wherein when the electromagnetic energy and the electric fields interact with the end material, the end material absorbs light of a particular wavelength, re-emits the light at different selected wavelengths and attenuates the light differently at different wavelengths to produce a filter with a desired wavelength distribution. 14. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising selecting the particles to comprise a plurality of different particle types, the different particle types having staggered refractive indices for generating an overlapping series of passbands that encompass the desired wavelength distribution. 15. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising reducing each of the different particle types to a particular size and shape to generate a particular wavelength passband. 16. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising reducing the optically active particles to a size that is approximately a size of the wavelength of the light to be passed by those particles. 17. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising selecting aluminum oxide for bandshifting the wavelengths of received light, silicon dioxide for shortening the wavelengths of the received light, and titanium dioxide for reflecting, absorbing and scattering the received light. 18. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising reducing the aluminum oxide to scallop shaped particles of about 1.4 microns or smaller. 19. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising reducing the silicon dioxide to substantially spherical shaped particles of about 1.5 microns or smaller. 20. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising reducing the titanium dioxide to triangular shaped particles with rounded edges of about 2 microns or smaller. 21. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising utilizing quantities of the titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide in a dry weight ratio of about 10:10:2, respectively. 22. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising utilizing quantities of the titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide to comprise about 1-2% of a total weight of the fiber. 23. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising encasing the optically active particles in the carrier material and acting as a lensing medium for the optically active particles. 24. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising forming the end material to make textiles. 25. An active material system, comprising: optically active means responsive to light due to an interaction of electromagnetic energy and electric fields; and carrier means combined with the optically active particles for retaining the particles and forming an end material; wherein when the electromagnetic energy and the electric fields interact with the end material, the end material absorbs light of a particular wavelength, re-emits the light at different selected wavelengths and attenuates the light differently at different wavelengths to produce a filter with a desired wavelength distribution. 26. The active material system as recited in claim 25, the optically active means comprising a plurality of different particle types, the different particle types having staggered refractive indices with respect to each other for generating an overlapping series of passbands that encompass the desired wavelength distribution. 27. The active material system as recited in claim 26, wherein each of the different particle types are reduced in size to a particular size and shape to generate a particular wavelength passband. 28. The active material system as recited in claim 27, the optically active means reduced to approximately a size of the wavelength of the light to be passed by those means.