Evolution of single gyroid photonic crystals in bird feathers

Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by PNAS..

Vivid, saturated structural colors are conspicuous and important features of many animals. A rich diversity of three-dimensional periodic photonic nanostructures is found in the chitinaceous exoskeletons of invertebrates. Three-dimensional photonic nanostructures have been described in bird feathers, but they are typically quasi-ordered. Here, we report bicontinuous single gyroid β-keratin and air photonic crystal networks in the feather barbs of blue-winged leafbirds (Chloropsis cochinchinensis sensu lato), which have evolved from ancestral quasi-ordered channel-type nanostructures. Self-assembled avian photonic crystals may serve as inspiration for multifunctional applications, as they suggest efficient, alternative routes to single gyroid synthesis at optical length scales, which has been experimentally elusive.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2021

Erschienen:

2021

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:118

Enthalten in:

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America - 118(2021), 23 vom: 08. Juni

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Saranathan, Vinodkumar [VerfasserIn]
Narayanan, Suresh [VerfasserIn]
Sandy, Alec [VerfasserIn]
Dufresne, Eric R [VerfasserIn]
Prum, Richard O [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Avian Proteins
Beta-Keratins
Biophotonic nanostructure
Bird coloration
Journal Article
Phase separation
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Self-assembly
Single gyroid

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 30.11.2021

Date Revised 30.11.2021

published: Print

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1073/pnas.2101357118

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM326232672