I-Corps: Brochosome-Inspired Optical Coating Technology

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力包括在光学、能源和可持续性应用中使用溴代酶涂层。小体是由昆虫分泌的结构复杂的微小颗粒，通常存在于昆虫的体表。该技术可以集成到相机或传感设备中，以抑制杂散反射，进一步提高传感器的灵敏度。此外，这种受brochoome启发的涂层可以被设计并集成到太阳能电池板上，以增强光传输，从而提高太阳能的收集。这种抗反射涂层也可以应用于玻璃和窗户表面，以提高建筑物的能源效率，此外，它还可以作为一种鸟类友好涂层，减少鸟类碰撞，实现环境的可持续性。I-Corps项目基于一种受brochoome启发的光学涂层，其特点是三维、分层的微纳米结构，可以抑制不同入射角下紫外线到近红外光的反射。提出的技术已经证明，溴化酶涂层可以应用于各种表面，并且可以防止紫外线到近红外光的反射高达99%。通过设计适合各种光学应用的微纳米结构的几何形状，可以定制受染色体启发的涂层的抗反射性能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commerical potential of this I-Corps project involves the use of brochosome-inspired coatings for optical, energy, and sustainability applications. Brochosomes are intricately structured microscopic granules secreted by insects and typically found on their body surface. The proposed brochosome-inspired coating technology could be integrated into camera or sensing devices to suppress stray reflections and to further enhance the sensor sensitivity. In addition, the brochosome-inspired coating could be engineered and incorporated onto solar panels to enhance optical transmission to improve solar energy harvesting. The antireflective coating could also be applied onto glass and window surfaces to improve energy efficiency of buildings, in addition to serving as a bird-friendly coating to reduce bird collisions for environmental sustainability. This I-Corps project is based on a brochosome-inspired optical coating characterized by three-dimensional, hierarchical micro- and nanostructures to suppress reflection from ultraviolet to near-infrared light at different incident angles. The proposed technology has demonstrated that brochosome-inspired coatings can be applied onto various surfaces and can prevent reflection of ultraviolet to near infrared light by as much as ~99%. The antireflective performances of the brochosomes-inspired coating can be tailored by engineering the geometries of the micro- and nanostructures suitable for various optical applications.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.