Through momentary muscle contractions, the great blue octopus can change the size and color of its namesake markings on its skin for purposes of deception, camouflage, and signaling. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have taken inspiration from this natural wonder to develop a technology platform with similar capabilities that can be used in a variety of fields, including military, medicine, robotics, and sustainable energy. Did.
According to the inventors, the new device made possible by this innovation features dynamically tunable fluorescent and spectral properties, ease of manufacture, and a large capacity to cover vehicles, signage, and even buildings. will benefit from the possibility of expanding into the size domain. This creature-inspired work is the subject of a study recently published in Nature Communications.
Hapaloclaena lunulata It is a type of octopus that lives in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. It can use its neurotoxic venom to stun prey and scare away predators with a flash of blue rings. The iridescent circles on the brown background of this creature’s skin are what caught the attention of researchers at the University of California, Irvine.
“We are interested in the mechanisms that underpin the blue octopus’ ability to quickly switch its skin patterns between hidden and exposed states,” said senior co-author, University of California, Irvine’s Department of Chemistry and Biomolecules. said Aron Gorodetsky, professor of engineering. “In this project, we set out to mimic the natural abilities of octopuses using a device made from unique materials synthesized in the lab. We now have a working octopus-inspired deception and signaling system that can be used continuously and can even automatically repair itself if damaged. ”
The architecture of this innovation consists of a thin film consisting of a wrinkled blue ring surrounding a brown circle, much like the circle of an octopus, between a transparent proton-conducting electrode on top and an acrylic membrane below. It should be sandwiched and have another identical electrode underneath it.
Further technological creativity by researchers occurs at the molecular level as they explore the use of acene, an organic compound composed of linearly fused benzene rings. According to Gorodetsky, the designer nonacene-like molecules the team used (with nine linearly fused rings) helped give the platform some of its great features.
“In our device, we conceptualized and designed a nonacene-like molecule with a unique structure,” said co-lead author Preeta Pratakshya, who recently completed her Ph.D. She graduated from the University of California, Irvine, Department of Chemistry. “Acene is an organic hydrocarbon molecule with many advantageous properties, including ease of synthesis, tunable electronic properties, and controllable optical properties.”
She added: “Our nonacene-like molecules are exceptional among acenes because they can withstand years of storage in air and continuous irradiation with bright light in the air for more than a day. ” he added. No other foamed acene has such long-term stability under such harsh conditions. ”
According to Gorodetsky, the type of molecule used to make the colored blue ring layer provides the most It is said that desirable features will be given to the device.
“Our co-author Sahar Sharifzadeh, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Boston University, demonstrated that the stimulus-response properties of molecules can be predicted computationally, thereby in silico and the design of other camouflage technologies,” Gorodetsky said.
In laboratory tests, many of which were conducted at the California Telecommunications and Information Technology Institute at the University of California, Irvine, the research team demonstrated that their bio-inspired devices maintain visible appearance with little or no degradation. We discovered that it can be changed over 500 times and can autonomously repair itself without deteriorating. User intervention.
According to Gorodetsky, the invention has been demonstrated to have a desirable combination of functionality in the ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. This allows the device to hide the detection of other objects or secretly send signals to the observer.
“The photophysical robustness and general processability of our nonacene-like molecules and possibly their variants provide opportunities for future studies of these compounds within the context of conventional optoelectronic systems such as light-emitting diodes and solar cells. ,” Gorodetsky added.
Joining Gorodetsky and Prataksha in this research were Chengyi Xu, Panyiming Liu, Reina Kurakake, and Robert Lopez from the University of California, Irvine’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering. David Josh Dibble and his colleague Anthony Burke from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Irvine; Philip Dennison, Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine; Aliya Mukazanova and Sharifzadeh of Boston University. Funding support was provided by the Office of Naval Research, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and the National Science Foundation.
