Replication of homologous optical and hydrophobic features by templating wings of butterflies Morpho menelaus

The revealed “Christmas-tree” nanostructures in the cover and ground scales of the butterfly Morpho menelaus are responsible for the observed iridescent blue color and the diffraction pattern of the wings. The aspect ratio of nanostructures in ground scales is more than 5 times higher than that of Morpho peleides cover scales. Inspired by the butterfly, artificial nanostructures are fabricated successfully by templating the scales imbricating in the wings with low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD) methods. Through structural characterizations and optical measurements, we reveal that the hybrid structures inherit not only the morphology of the scales with high fidelity but also the homologous optical features including iridescence and diffraction. Besides, water contact angle measurements on both uncoated and coated wings show hydrophobic results. The integration of bio-templates and ALD methods provide a potential route to fabricate the nanostructures with multi-functional features, which may be especially crucial in the applications of innovative functional optical devices.

Research Highlights
► “Christmas-tree” nanostructures contribute to the visual effects of Morpho menelaus.
► ALD achieves comformal replication even with high aspect ratio bio-templates.
► Comprehensive optical features of Morpho butterflies are inherited in coated wings.
► Hydrophobic feature of Morpho butterflies is inherited in coated wings.