Comments on: Butterfly Wings, Colors, and Solar Cells

By: Radiant Light Film: Learning to Make Rainbows from Butterflies | ARCHITERIALS

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:42:45 +0000

[…] a well-mannered material that manages to create a striking effect with a minimum of fuss. Taking a cue from butterfly wings, the colors in the film are created NOT through the use of pigments but rather through a series of […]

By: New Color-changing Microsensor Material Detects Volatile Organic Compounds | ARCHITERIALS

Mon, 02 May 2011 20:40:43 +0000

[…] The researchers “assembled the nanofibers into repeating structures called photonic crystals that reflect specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. The wing scales of the Morpho butterfly, which give the insect its brilliant iridescent coloration, are natural examples of this kind of structure. The sensors are an iridescent color too, rather than black like ordinary carbon. That color changes when the fibers absorb toxins – a visible indication of their capacity for absorbing additional chemicals” (Brown). You can learn more about the nanoscale structures that make up butterfly wings here. […]

By: Pete Morphofan

Pete Morphofan — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:28:34 +0000

Butterfly wings do fade in sunlight. Leave a one of those magnificent blues in bright sunlight for a year and it will become a pale creamy imitation of itself. Not sure why -if it’s the structure which gives the color. Maybe the heat/ UV affects the starch in the gyroid structure and shrinks/warps it? Must take a look under the microscope someday…