Materials science in science fiction is the study of how materials science is portrayed in works of science fiction. The accuracy of the materials science portrayed spans a wide range – sometimes it is an extrapolation of existing technology, sometimes it is a physically realistic portrayal of a far-out technology, and sometimes it is simply a plot device that looks scientific, but has no basis in science. Examples are: Realistic: In 1944, the science fiction story "Deadline"CARTMILL, CLEVE. "Deadline." IN: Astounding Science Fiction, Vol. XXXIII, No. l, pp. 154–178. New York: Street & Smith, March 1944. by Cleve Cartmill depicted the atomic bomb. The properties of various radioactive isotopes are critical to the proposed device, and the plot. This technology was real, unknown to the author. Extrapolation: In the 1979 novel The Fountains of Paradise, Arthur C. Clarke wrote about space elevators – basically long cables extending from the Earth's surface to geosynchronous orbit. These require a material with enormous tensile strength and light weight. Carbon nanotubes are strong enough in theory, so the idea is plausible; while one cannot be built today, it violates no physical principles. Plot device: An example of an unsupported plot device is scrith, the material used to construct Ringworld, in the novels by Larry Niven. Scrith has unreasonable strength, and is unsupported by known physics, but needed for the plot.
Critical analysis of materials science in science fiction falls into the same general categories. The predictive aspects are emphasized, for example, in the motto of the Georgia Tech's department of materials science and engineering – Materials scientists lead the way in turning yesterday's science fiction into tomorrow's reality. This is also the theme of many technical articles, such as Material By Design: Future Science or Science Fiction?, found in IEEE Spectrum, the flagship magazine of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
On the other hand, there is criticism of the unrealistic materials science used in science fiction. In the professional materials science journal JOM, for example, there are articles such as The (Mostly Improbable) Materials Science and Engineering of the Star Wars Universe and Personification: The Materials Science and Engineering of Humanoid Robots.
Examples
In many cases, the materials science aspect of a fictional work was interesting enough that someone other than the author has remarked on it. Here are some examples, and their relationship to real world materials science usage, if any.
NameSourceUsesRelated real useAluminiumStar TrekIn the 1986 film Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Scotty gives instructions for the creation of the fictional material transparent aluminum.Sapphire, an aluminium oxide (Al2O3), is transparent, and used as window material in some scientific applications.
In real life, scientists have announced a ceramic, aluminium oxynitride (trade name Alon) which is as strong as steel, but transparent.BerylliumGalaxy Quest, The ShadowThe starship NSEA Protector is powered by large spheres of beryllium. Also, beryllium is needed for the creation of a bomb and found by investigating the metal components of a supposed "beryllium coin" in The Shadow (1994). Critics have noted this similarity.Beryllium's use in these fictional applications may arise from its actual use in some types of nuclear bombs.Calcium carbonateStargate SG-1When made in suitable rocks such as calcium carbonate oxygen is produced as a by-product during the formation of Crystal tunnels by the Tokra allowing time to set up life support.There is serious work in extracting oxygen from moon rocks for life support and propulsion. NASA has sponsored a prize (MoonROx) for the first working prototype, and at least one has been built.CobaltApocalyptic fiction such as The Moon is Green, "Exhibit Piece", and On the Beach.The 5.27-year half-life of Co is short enough to produce intense radiation, but long enough for it to disperse world-wide, and impractical to wait in shelters for it to decay. This combination of properties makes a cobalt bomb an excellent doomsday weapon.The science here is realistic. Fortunately, cobalt bombs have remained in the domain of science fiction.Copper and Copper(II) sulfateThe Skylark of Space series by Edward E. "Doc" SmithIn these stories, copper is used as spaceship fuel, being catalyzed by 'element X' directly into energy. When the ship's supply of copper is exhausted, it is able to refuel and return home by visiting the Green System, which has oceans containing copper sulfate.Copper is indeed used in rocket engines, but for its high thermal conductivity, not as a power source.DilithiumStar Trek Dilithium is fictionally used as shorthand for an extremely complex and hard crystal structure (2(5)6 dilithium 2(:)l diallosilicate 1:9:1 heptoferranide), which occurs naturally on some planets. When placed in a high-frequency electromagnetic field, magnetic eddies are induced in its structure which keep charged particles away from the crystal lattice. This prevents it from reacting with antimatter when so energized, because the antimatter atoms never actually touch it. Therefore, it is used to contain and regulate the annihilation reaction of matter and antimatter in a starship's warp core, which otherwise would explode from the uncontrolled annihilation reaction. Though low-quality artificial crystals can be grown or replicated, they are limited in the power of the reaction they can regulate without fragmenting, and so are largely unsuitable for warp drive applications. Due to the need for natural dilithium crystals for interstellar travel, deposits of this material are a highly contested resource, and as such dilithium crystals have led to more interstellar conflict than all other reasons combined.In reality, dilithium describes a diatomic gas.DuraluminvariousThe Marvel Comics character Captain America wears lightweight duralumin mail beneath his costume for added protection.
A duralumin briefcase was featured in the game Resident Evil: Code Veronica. Two feature in Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair.
Duralumin is one of many metals used for magic in the Mistborn series.Duralumin is an early aluminium alloy with unexceptional properties by modern standards. Other metals such as titanium are much stronger and about the same weight.EinsteiniumThe Tashkent CrisisIn William Craig's Cold War novel, einsteinium-119 is used to build a nuclear warhead into the casing of a Colt .45 pistol.This element has isotopes with low critical masses. Values as low as 32 grams have been reported in the literature. However, an isotope of einsteinium with an atomic weight of 119 is unrealistic – real-life mass numbers range from 245 to 257.Final report: Evaluation of nuclear criticality safety data and limits for actinides in transport Carbon, as Fullerenes and Carbon nanotubesThe Fountains of Paradise, many othersSee fullerenes in popular culture.In real life, fullerenes and nanotubes have various mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties. See, for example Potential applications of carbon nanotubes.Hard waterThe Flash comicsElectrically charged hard water was originally the item that gave the first Flash (Jay Garrick) his superhuman speed. Critics and even the comic's authors realized this was unlikely, and Garrick's origin was retconned to involve heavy water instead.Heavy water, or water made with deuterium, has some high-tech uses, including use as a moderator in nuclear reactors. Hard water, on the other hand, is simply water that contains many dissolved minerals.Helium-3films Moon and Iron Sky, video game Anno 2205, novels Luna: New Moon, Morning Star, Red Rising, and others.Several science fiction works have featured helium-3 extraction on the Moon, including Moon, Iron Sky, Anno 2205, and Luna: New Moon. Morning Star features helium-3 mining on Phobos (a moon of Mars), while the novel Red Rising features helium-3 extraction from Mars itself. The helium-3 is valuable since it can be used to power fusion.Materials on the Moon's surface contain helium-3 at concentrations on the order of between 1.4 and 15 ppb in sunlit areas,FTI Research Projects :: 3He Lunar Mining . Fti.neep.wisc.edu. Retrieved on 2011-11-08. and may contain concentrations as much as 50 ppb in permanently shadowed regions. A number of people, starting with Gerald Kulcinski in 1986, have proposed to mine lunar regolith.Hydrogen-4The Mouse That RoaredThis isotope of hydrogen is called Quadium and powers a thermonuclear doomsday device called the Q-bomb, which is captured by the Duchy of Grand Fenwick.Hydrogen-4 really exists, but is unstable with a lifetime of about 2 x 10 seconds. The other more stable isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, are used in hydrogen bombs.Ice-nineCat's CradleIce-nine is a fictional alternative structure of water that is solid at room temperature and acts as a seed crystal upon contact with ordinary liquid water, causing that liquid water to instantly freeze and transform into more ice-nine. In the book, ice-nine is considered to be a doomsday weapon, due to the possibility of introducing ice-nine into a large body of water (such as a lake or ocean), thus causing that body of water to become solid.Ice IX is real, as is Ice-I through Ice-XIV. However, Ice IX is only stable at below ambient temperatures and high pressure. The behavior of ice-nine in the book probably comes from the fact that pure water can be supercooled, that is, cooled below the freezing temperature, while remaining liquid, until an impurity or seed crystal is introduced, which causes the water to solidify. It was not inspired by the real Ice-IX, which was only discovered 5 years after the book was published.LeadDC UniverseSuperman's X-ray vision is unable to penetrate lead. Additionally, kryptonite radiation can be blocked by lead.
Daxamites are highly susceptible to lead poisoning, with lead acting akin to kryptonite on Kryptonians.X-rays are strongly attenuated, though not completely blocked, by lead.
Lead poisoning is a very real effect.LysineJurassic ParkIn the film Jurassic Park, the dinosaurs have their DNA modified so that they cannot produce lysine and must be supplied with it by the park's feeding system; otherwise they will eventually die. This is a security measure to prevent the creatures from spreading if they ever escape into the outside world. In the book, the dinosaurs escape and survive by eating things rich in lysine such as soybeans and lentils.Real-life biological experiments use this mechanism. However, lysine is a poor choice since most modern animals (including humans) cannot synthesize it either, but thrive by including it in their diet. p. 143Moscovium ("Element 115") urban myths, UFO conspiracy theory culture, Dark Reign, X-COM series, othersIn the world of UFO conspiracy theory culture during the 1980s and 1990s, Bob Lazar asserted that moscovium functioned as a gravity wave generator for UFOs, being "stepped up" (excited) to livermorium by proton bombardment, and that livermorium's decay products would include gravitons, or "a pure gravity wave" (no quantification of the gravitic field).Bob Lazar: The Man Behind Area 51. 8newsnow.com (2005-05-20). Retrieved on 2011-05-06.
In the X-COM series, in reference to this kind of UFO theory, "element 115" is known as elerium-115 or just elerium.
A stable isotope of "element 115" occurs in the game Dark Reign.
A stable isotope of "Element 115" powers the "Back Step" time machine system in the American television series Seven Days. An accidental environmental contamination once caused a large number of congenital disorders.