“‘It’s an invisibility cloak.’ said Ron, a look of awe on his face. ‘I’m sure it is---try it on.’
Harry threw the cloak around his shoulders and Ron gave a yell.
‘It is! Look down!’
Harry looked down at his feet, but they were gone. He dashed to the mirror. Sure enough, his reflection looked back at him, just his head suspended in midair, his body completely invisible. He pulled the cloak over his head and his reflection vanished completely.”
p. 201, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
An invisibility cloak is used to completely hide the wearer from others without casting a shadow. While most cloaks are made of Demiguise hair or imbibed with a Disillusionment Charm, Harry’s cloak is one of a kind. It is part of the Deathly Hallows and was originally used by Death in order to sneak up on unsuspecting victims. Unlike it’s copies, it does not fade with age, nor does it’s power wear down, making it the ultimate “weapon” of stealth. The cloak itself is very old and was handed from Death to Ignotus Peverell, an ancestor of Harry. There is not any type of cloaking device today that can completely render the individual operating it invisible because the cloak would have to manipulate and bend light at all frequencies of light. However, researchers have been successful at creating cloaking devices made up of metamaterials, or non-naturally occurring materials that can cloak a copper cylinder by manipulating certain wavelengths of light around it. If scientists were able to produce invisibility cloaks, they could be used for warfare or spying purposes, though they would have to be able to completely hide an individual and not cast a shadow. In short, we believe that invisibility cloaks are possible to manufacture, but perhaps only on a small scale and only on certain wavelengths of light.
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