Circularly polarized colour reflection from helicoidal structures in the beetle<i>Plusiotis boucardi</i>

Jewell, S. A.; Vukusic, Peter; Roberts, Nicholas W.

doi:10.1088/1367-2630/9/4/099

Cited by 133 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 22 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The study of such beetles goes back to the work of Michelson more than a century ago [46], but novel effects are still being discovered [47]. The reflected color is generated in the elyra which contains chitin fibers in a protein layer, which change their orientation as to resemble a cholesteric liquid crystal.…”

Section: Selective Reflection Of Beetlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chiral Liquid Crystals: Structures, Phases, Effects

2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The introduction of chirality, i.e., the lack of mirror symmetry, has a profound effect on liquid crystals, not only on the molecular scale but also on the supermolecular scale and phase. I review these effects, which are related to the formation of supermolecular helicity, the occurrence of novel thermodynamic phases, as well as electro-optic effects which can only be observed in chiral liquid crystalline materials. In particular, I will discuss the formation of helical superstructures in cholesteric, Twist Grain Boundary and ferroelectric phases. As examples for the occurrence of novel phases the Blue Phases and Twist Grain Boundary phases are introduced. Chirality related effects are demonstrated through the occurrence of ferroelectricity in both thermotropic as well as lyotropic liquid crystals. Lack of mirror symmetry is also discussed briefly for some biopolymers such as cellulose and DNA, together with its influence on liquid crystalline behavior.

show abstract

Section: Selective Reflection Of Beetlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chiral Liquid Crystals: Structures, Phases, Effects

2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The cholesteric organization is found in the organic matrix of many beetles and is responsible for their iridescent colors. The cuticle of the beetle Plusiotis boucardi exhibits reflections in the green and red [5]. Investigation of cross-sections of the elytra by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) has revealed these reflections come from two CLC structures with distinct pitches.…”

Section: Broad Wavelength Bandgapmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polymer–cholesteric liquid-crystalline composites with a broad light reflection band

Mitov¹

2016

AIP Conference Proceedings

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

To cite this version:Michel Mitov. Polymer-cholesteric liquid-crystalline composites with a broad light reflection band. D'Amore A., Grassia L., Acierno D. VIII International Conference on "Times of Polymers and Composites" , Jun 2016, Ischia, Italy. American Institute of Physics Inc., VIII International Conference on "Times of Polymers and Composites" 1736, pp.20004 -20004, 2016 Abstract. Cholesteric liquid crystals selectively reflect the light. The reflection bandgap is typically limited to 100 nm in the visible spectrum and, at the best, 50% of the unpolarized incident light is reflected. Solutions are found in biopolymers and polymer-liquid crystal composite materials to go beyond these limits.

show abstract

“…Several optical models have previously been described that identify the RI ⊥ , i.e. in the direction of the thread, is higher than the RI || [18][19][20].…”

Section: Optical Activity In Beetle Cuticlementioning

confidence: 99%

“…A continuously varying pitch length manifests in a chirped multilayer structure that gives rise the broadband colours of many beetles. Others, such as Chrysina boucardi, employ pitch variance differently to give more narrowband colours [19].…”

Section: Refl Ection By Helicoidal Structuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Photonic architectures in beetles: twists and iridescence

McDonald¹,

Starkey²,

Vukusic³

2014

Int. J. DNE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The order Coleoptera is, by any standard, a prodigious showcase for the extraordi nary creativity and fl exibility of the evolutionary process. Concurrent with a desire to overcome the present limitations of optical coating technologies, a number of novel and elegant refl ectance mechanisms have been discovered in the realms of biological systems including 3D photonic crystals and quasi-ordered coherent scattering arrays. Beetles, in particular, possess many desirable and, crucially, tunable properties from a biomimetic perspective. Here, we provide a detailed discussion of two coleopteran structures, namely 1D multilayers and helically arranged 'Bouligand' structures, and consider their putative entomological functions and potential applications in bioinspired technologies.

show abstract

Circularly polarized colour reflection from helicoidal structures in the beetlePlusiotis boucardi

Cited by 133 publications

References 22 publications

Chiral Liquid Crystals: Structures, Phases, Effects

Chiral Liquid Crystals: Structures, Phases, Effects

Polymer–cholesteric liquid-crystalline composites with a broad light reflection band

Photonic architectures in beetles: twists and iridescence

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About