Researchers Fabricate Camouflage Coating From Squid Protein
IRVING, CA – What can the U.S. military learn from a common squid? According to researchers at UC Irvine’s Henry Samueli School of Engineering, it can learn a lot about how to hide from enemies. As detailed in a study published online in Advanced Materials, researchers have created a biomimetic infrared camouflage coating inspired by Loliginidae, also known as pencil squids or your everyday calamari.
Led by Alon Gorodetsky, an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, the team produced reflectin – a structural protein essential in the squid’s ability to change color and reflect light – in common bacteria and used it to make thin, optically active films that mimic the skin of a squid.