Posted in | Nanomaterials

New Book Describes How Nature Has Produced Some of the World's Most Advanced Nanomaterials

A new book, which explores how nature's own laboratory has been producing some of the world's most advanced nanomaterials for millions of years, has been released.

Nature’s Nanostructures, edited by CSIRO scientists Dr Amanda Barnard and Dr Haibo Guo.



"I think is it generally assumed that nanomaterials are a relatively new phenomenon but some nanoparticles have been present in animals and minerals for millions of years and are a natural occurrence," says Dr Amanda Barnard, leader of the Virtual Nanoscience Laboratory at CSIRO.


New CSIRO research on beetles and the reflective qualities of their shells is included in the book. The chapter titled 'Photonic Crystals in Beetles' explores 3D crystals produced by opal weevils and how these nanostructures not only create vivid structural colours, but also reflect light at virtually any angle.


"By studying how these nanomaterials are naturally produced we will be one step closer to being able to replicate these materials in a lab environment and exploring their potential applications in science and industry," says Dr Barnard.

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