Biomimicry of iridescent, patterned insect cuticles: comparison of biological and synthetic, cholesteric microcells using hyperspectral imaging.

ABSTRACT: Biological systems inspire the design of multifunctional materials and devices. However, current synthetic replicas rarely capture the range of structural complexity observed in natural materials. Prior to the definition of a biomimetic design, a dual investigation with a common set of criteria for comparing the biological material and the replica is required. Here, we deal with this issue by addressing the non-trivial case of insect cuticles tessellated with polygonal microcells with iridescent colours due to the twisted cholesteric organization of chitin fibres. By using hyperspectral imaging within a common methodology, we compare, at several length scales, the textural, structural and spectral properties of the microcells found in the two-band cuticle of the scarab beetle Chrysina g

SUBMITTER: Jullien A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7328402 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature