Antireflective Coating: Sugar-based carbon hollow spheres that mimic moth eyesThey are not to eat, b
Antireflective Coating: Sugar-based carbon hollow spheres that mimic moth eyesThey are not to eat, but this insect-inspired ordered monolayer of hollow carbon spheres may be a new, green and extremely lightweight antireflective coating that almost perfectly absorbs microwave radiationAntireflective coatings are used to cut surface glare in everything from eyeglasses and camera lenses to solar cells, TV screens and LED devices. Now researchers from Research Institute for Nuclear Problems of Belarusian State University in Belarus and Institut Jean Lamour-Université de Lorraine in France have developed a novel, low-cost, ultra-lightweight material that could be used as an effective anti-reflective surface for microwave radiation based on the eyes of moths.The eyes of moths are covered with a periodic, hexagonal pattern of tiny bumps smaller than the wavelength of the incident light. They act as a continuous refractive index gradient, allowing the moths to see at night and avoid nocturnal predators, like the bat. The physiology also makes the moth eye one of the most effective antireflective coatings in nature. It has already successfully been mimicked by scientists for developing high-performance antireflective coatings for visible lights – albeit coatings that are often expensive to fabricate and difficult to customize.The new material cuts down reflections from microwaves rather than from visible light – invisible energy from a different part of the energy spectrum. Blocking microwave reflection is an important application for precise microwave measurements, and the coating may be used as a radar absorbing material in stealth technology, a technique that makes make an airplane invisible to radar, or police traffic radar that uses microwaves to measure car speed.Read more. -- source link
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