Additive and subtractive modification of butterfly wing structural colors

Abstract The modification of photonic nanoarchitectures occurring in butterfly wing scales with different nanostructures was investigated experimentally and by modeling. Single crystalline, polycrystalline, simple thin film, pepper-pot-type the butterflies were investigated. By atomic layer deposition (ALD) (additive) color all red shifted plasma etching (subtractive) blue a controllable way. Langmuir-Blodgett multilayers silica nanospheres used as physical models. ALD produced shifts similar to those for wings. In case theoretical calculation reproduced spectral alterations well. For more complex nanoarchitectures, general trends modifications well sophisticated models, but differences magnitude found, attributed complex, random porous structures structures.