Brittlestars equal optic breakthrough?
  08/24/2001 4:25:26 AM MDT Albuquerque, Nm
  By Dustin D. Brand; Owner AMO

Small marine creatures could help technology with small natural lenses.   Brittlestars, also known as serpent stars, are marine invertebrates that usually have five thin long arms emanating from a small, disk-shaped body. These amazing creatures have minature lenses, which when Bell Labs (Lucent Technologies) Research & Development division investigated them, found might hold a breakthrough in fiber optics.

  The Bell Labs scientists, working with the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History, found chalklike calcite crystals in the skeletons of the marine creatures. These crystals are in reality small lenses and could offer a method of improving the transmission of light along fiber-optic networks. The team found that Brittlestars use calcite crystals as optical detectors, or lenses, as well as skeletal support, the company said.

  This Bell research is part of the emerging biomimetics field, which studies nature to find better technologies, and was conducted over the past year, Lucent said. "This is an excellent example of something we can learn from nature," Federico Capasso, physical research vice president at Bell Labs, said in a statement. "These tiny calcite crystals are nearly perfect optical microlenses, much better than any we can manufacture today."

  Who would have ever thought that "StarFish" actually see light? You can't see noticeable eyes on their bodies, and the use of star isn't because of their ability to see the light of a star, but their shape. Nature is amazing. Scientists continue to learn from nature, and in turn intend to mimic how the calcite microlenses compensate for physical effects common in lenses that distort light. Designing actual microlenses based on the brittlestar model are next, Lucent said.

  The knowledge learned from the Brittlestar nature model could prove useful in optical networks and even chip design where they could improve optical lithography (or "etching") techniques.

  The scientists work was published in the Journal of Nature on Thursday.