Nanostructured antireflective and thermoisolative cicada wings

Junko Morikawa, Meguya Ryu, Gediminas Seniutinas, Armandas Balčytis, Ksenia Maximova*, Xuewen Wang, Massimiliano Zamengo, Elena P. Ivanova, Saulius Juodkazis

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Inter-related mechanical, thermal, and optical macroscopic properties of biomaterials are defined at the nanoscale by their constituent structures and patterns, which underpin complex functions of an entire bioobject. Here, the temperature diffusivity of a cicada (Cyclochila australasiae) wing with nanotextured surfaces was measured using two complementary techniques: a direct contact method and IR imaging. The 4-6-μm-thick wing section was shown to have a thermal diffusivity of α = (0.71 ± 0.15) × 10-7 m2/s, as measured by the contact temperature wave method along the thickness of the wing; it corresponds to the inherent thermal property of the cuticle. The in-plane thermal diffusivity value of the wing was determined by IR imaging and was considerably larger at α = (3.6 ± 0.2) × 10-7 m2/s as a result of heat transport via air. Optical properties of wings covered with nanospikes were numerically simulated using an accurate 3D model of the wing pattern and showed that light is concentrated between spikes where intensity is enhanced by up to 3- to 4-fold. The closely packed pattern of nanospikes reduces the reflectivity of the wing throughout the visible light spectrum and over a wide range of incident angles, hence acting as an antireflection coating.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)4698-4703
Number of pages6
JournalLangmuir
Volume32
Issue number18
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 10 May 2016
Externally publishedYes

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