ABSTRACT
For hundreds of years, humans have been drawing inspiration from the natural world, from the hook-and-loop design in Velcro to the examination of the wing tips of eagles for a method to improve wing ef‡ciencies. As we often consider photonic structures to require careful manufacture within sterile environments, it is easy to ignore examples within nature as a source for inspiration when creating new designs. The diversity evident within even a small number of organisms demonstrates methods applicable to enhancing the quality of diffuse white reŽection, emission from OLEDs, and the creation of threedimensional (3D) photonic crystals. The earliest example of their inspiration is the observations of reŽection from a series of iridescent natural samples in the late 1800s and early 1900s that led to developments in the understanding of how electromagnetic waves interact with thin ‡lms.1,2
Despite the constant examination of a variety of natural samples since this time, and the application of transmission electron microscopy to natural samples in the 1940s, it is still possible to observe new and unique structures in studies conducted today, or to further our understanding by applying new techniques. In this chapter we aim to provide a small insight into the ‡eld of natural photonics, and thereby demonstrate its relevance to future developments within the ‡eld of photonics.
