Mesostructure of Ordered Corneal Nano-nipple Arrays: The Role of 5-7 Coordination Defects.

ABSTRACT: Corneal nano-nipple structures consisting of hexagonally arranged protrusions with diameters around 200 nm have long been known for their antireflection capability and have served as biological blueprint for solar cell, optical lens and other surface designs. However, little is known about the global arrangement of these nipples on the ommatidial surface and their growth during the eye development. This study provides new insights based on the analysis of nano-nipple arrangements on the mesoscale across entire ommatidia, which has never been done before. The most important feature in the nipple structures are topological 5- and 7-fold coordination defects, which align to form dislocations and interconnected networks of grain boundaries that divide the ommatidia into crystalline domains in

SUBMITTER: Lee KC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4916435 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature