Papilio Nireus Adorns Itself with the Latest LEDs

Function

Native to eastern and central Africa, Papilio nireus is a butterfly with pretty, bright blue wings. It has been recently discovered that the structure of P. nireus’ scales matches the structure of one of mankind’s inventions, the latest LEDs* (light-emitting diodes). The design that humans had so painstakingly developed had been known to P. nireus all along. *A material that emits light when an electrical current is passed through it. Compared to light bulbs or fluorescent lights, LEDs are much brighter and can be used almost indefinitely. They are coming into increasingly widespread use in daily life, from the display panels of cellular phones to traffic lights.

Functional Classification

Resouce/Energy/Information Transmission & Production:
Color changing

Environmental Solution Classification

Related Literature

Pete Vukusic and Ian Hooper, SCIENCE Vol. 310 (2005) 1151.

Technical Application

Products and Services

Type of Business

Proposals of Applied Technology

Photonic crystal, a material that controls light, is at the center of much active research. It is the star representative of bottom-up-style nanotechnology, an approach that artificially composes smaller structures. At the same time, there is anticipation around the development of technology to easily and spontaneously create photonic crystal structures. Determining how Papilio nireus’ scales are formed could provide a big hint. With the invention of the blue diode, all three primary colors of light became available and LEDs, the fourth-generation light source, are expected to become popular as general light fixtures in the future. Perhaps we can achieve the dream of a bright, energy-efficient, long-lived and hassle-free light source by studying the formation and structural mechanism of the scales of P. nireus, the great ancestor of the LED.

Proposals of Applied Industry

Related Life Style