The Australian National University's Mohsen Rahmani works with technology so small, you can't see it with the naked eye. Nanotechnology takes things to a scale where everything is tiny and precise.

"A few years ago, turning a window into a mirror and vice-versa, or having a piece of glass that could let you see in the dark, were things you could only see in the Harry Potter or James Bond series," Dr Rahmani said.

"Today, by using the technology I have developed, you can realise this imagination."

For his work in creating nanoscale surfaces, Dr Rahmani received the prize for Outstanding Early Career Researcher.

The implications of this technology are as wide-ranging as night vision, or doctors being able to detect diseases from biochemicals in human breath.

Details - http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-08-29/eureka-prizes-2018-five-awesome-innovations-australian-research/10179328

Image: Dr Mohsen Rahmani works on the nanoscale. Supplied: Australian Museum Eureka Prizes