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Photonics

Chemistry In Pictures

Chemistry in Pictures: Mechanochromeleon

by Craig Bettenhausen
December 21, 2021

 

Credit: Sci. Adv. 2021, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abj8780

Structural color is all the rage. Or at least C&EN writers find it fascinating. But what if structural color, which results from the geometry of microscopic components instead of from a material’s inherent color, was printable? Jong Bin Kim of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and coworkers dispersed silica particles in acrylate-based resins to create structural color inks compatible with a laboratory printing system. After curing with ultraviolet light, the resulting patterns were colorful and durable. Because the color results from optical effects created by the pattern and density of the silica particles, printing on a stretchy substance created color-changing patterns when the film was stretched. The researchers hope their work will give artists and graphic designers new tools they can use to be creative.

Credit: Sci. Adv. 2021, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abj8780

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