A shape-anisotropic reflective polarizer in a stomatopod crustacean

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorJordan, Thomas M.
dc.contributor.authorWilby, David
dc.contributor.authorChiou, Tsyr-Huei
dc.contributor.authorFeller, Kathryn D.
dc.contributor.authorCaldwell, Roy L.
dc.contributor.authorCronin, Thomas W.
dc.contributor.authorRoberts, Nicholas W.
dc.date.accessioned2019-04-01T14:50:37Z
dc.date.available2019-04-01T14:50:37Z
dc.date.issued2016-02-17
dc.description.abstractMany biophotonic structures have their spectral properties of reflection ‘tuned’ using the (zeroth-order) Bragg criteria for phase constructive interference. This is associated with a periodicity, or distribution of periodicities, parallel to the direction of illumination. The polarization properties of these reflections are, however, typically constrained by the dimensional symmetry and intrinsic dielectric properties of the biological materials. Here we report a linearly polarizing reflector in a stomatopod crustacean that consists of 6–8 layers of hollow, ovoid vesicles with principal axes of ~550 nm, ~250 nm and ~150 nm. The reflection of unpolarized normally incident light is blue/green in colour with maximum reflectance wavelength of 520 nm and a degree of polarization greater than 0.6 over most of the visible spectrum. We demonstrate that the polarizing reflection can be explained by a resonant coupling with the first-order, in-plane, Bragg harmonics. These harmonics are associated with a distribution of periodicities perpendicular to the direction of illumination, and, due to the shape-anisotropy of the vesicles, are different for each linear polarization mode. This control and tuning of the polarization of the reflection using shape-anisotropic hollow scatterers is unlike any optical structure previously described and could provide a new design pathway for polarization-tunability in man-made photonic devices.en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipWe acknowledge the support of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (FA8655-12-1-2112 to NWR and TWC), the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BB/G022917/1 to NWR) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/E501214/1 to NWR and TMJ). H. H. Thoen and M. L. Porter are acknowledged for helping to collect animals.en_US
dc.description.urihttps://www.nature.com/articles/srep21744en_US
dc.format.extent8 pagesen_US
dc.genrejournal articlesen_US
dc.identifierdoi:10.13016/m2dtkg-nazr
dc.identifier.citationThomas M. Jordan , David Wilby , Tsyr-Huei Chiou , Kathryn D. Feller , Roy L. Caldwell , Thomas W. Cronin & Nicholas W. Roberts, A shape-anisotropic reflective polarizer in a stomatopod crustacean, Scientific Reports volume 6, Article number: 21744 (2016), https://doi.org/10.1038/srep21744en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1038/srep21744
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11603/13282
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisherSpringer Nature Publishing AGen_US
dc.relation.isAvailableAtThe University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Biological Sciences Department Collection
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Faculty Collection
dc.rightsThis item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)*
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/*
dc.subjectBragg criteria for phase constructive interferenceen_US
dc.subjectpolarizationen_US
dc.subjectstomatopod crustaceanen_US
dc.subjectshape-anisotropic hollow scatterersen_US
dc.subjectman-made photonic devicesen_US
dc.titleA shape-anisotropic reflective polarizer in a stomatopod crustaceanen_US
dc.typeTexten_US

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
srep21744.pdf
Size:
3.14 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
2.56 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download

Collections

UMBC Biological Sciences Department
UMBC Faculty Collection