ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Zinc selenide

Okay, Zinc Selenide is like a special material that is made up of small particles called atoms. Think of these atoms like tiny building blocks that can be put together in different ways to make different things. Zinc Selenide is made up of Zinc atoms and Selenide atoms that are put together in a specific way.

Now, Zinc Selenide is really good at letting light pass through it. This means that you can see through it like a window. But, it's not like any other window you've seen before. It's really good at letting certain types of light pass through that you can't see with your eyes. These types of light are called infrared light.

Why is it important that we can see infrared light? Well, infrared light can help us see things that are too hot, too far away or too small for our eyes to see. We can use special cameras that can see infrared light to help us find things like gas leaks, heat leaks in buildings, or even find people who are lost at night.

Now, Zinc Selenide is not just useful for seeing infrared light, it's also really strong and can withstand high temperatures. This makes it perfect for making things like lenses for infrared cameras or even windows on spacecraft!

So, in short, Zinc Selenide is a special material made up of small particles that can help us see things we can't see with our eyes because it's really good at letting infrared light pass through. It's also strong and useful for making things like lenses and spacecraft windows.