The nanometer is a unit of length that refers to one part of a billionth of a meter. Nanotechnology, on the other hand, is a technology that studies the properties and interactions of matter at the nanoscale (between 1 and 1000 nanometers) and uses these properties. In nanotechnology, nanomaterials are the main research object and foundation.
In fact, nanotechnology is not mysterious and is not patented by humans. Nanomaterials and nanotechnology existed as early as the beginning of the universe. In the long process of earth's evolution, the creatures of nature, from the magnificent lotus flowers, ugly spiders, to the eerie sea snake tails, from flying bees, water shrews on the surface of the water, to shells in the sea, from gorgeous butterflies, palm-sized geckos, to bacteria that can only be seen by microscopes... They are all masters of a number of nanotechnology. These animals and plants have survived tenaciously in nature from generation to generation through exquisite nanotechnology, or relying on them to make a living, or to resist enemies, not only enriching the world around us, but also bringing countless inspirations and inspirations to modern nanotechnology workers.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-center-line" > a self-purifying lotus</h1>
When one mentions the lotus flower, one naturally associates oneself with the rolling dew on the lotus leaf and its noble character of coming out of the mud without staining.
In the 1970s, Batlot, a botanist at the University of Bonn in Germany, found that the smooth leaf surface had dust on the surface of the leaves, which had to be cleaned before being observed under a microscope, while the leaf surfaces such as lotus leaves were always clean. They used artificial dust particles to pollute the leaf surface of 8 kinds of plants such as magnolia, forest beech, lotus, taro, kale, etc., and then washed it with artificial rain for 2 minutes, and finally tilted the leaf surface by 15 ° to make the raindrops slide down, and observed the residual status of leaf dust particles. Experiments have found that some plants have more than 40% of pollutants on the foliage, while the proportion of pollutants on the leaves of plants such as lotus flowers is less than 5%. This is called the lotus effect.
So, what causes this lotus effect? What benefits does the lotus effect bring to the plant itself7, modern electron microscopy technology can give the right answer.
Through electron microscopy, we can observe the presence of very complex multi-nanometer and micron-sized ultrastructures on the surface of lotus leaves. There are some tiny waxy particles on the surface of the lotus leaf, and it is covered with countless spurs of about 10 microns in size, and the surface of each spurt is covered with finer villi with a diameter of only a few hundred nanometers. The depression between the bulges is filled with air, so that it forms an extremely thin layer of air that is only nanoscale thick close to the leaf surface, so that dust, rain, etc., which are much larger than this structure, will not directly contact the leaf surface in a wide range after falling on the leaf surface, but will be separated by a very thin layer of air, and the points that can be contacted are only a few raised points on the leaf surface.
This is the result of the long-term evolution of organisms in nature, and it is this special nanostructure that allows the surface of the lotus leaf to be free of water droplets and can be kept clean: when there is water on the lotus leaf, the water will form a spherical shape under the action of its own surface tension. When the wind blows the water droplets rolling on the leaf surface, the water droplets can pick up the dust on the leaf surface and slide off at high speed from above, so that the lotus leaves can better photosynthesize.
Studies have shown that this surface ultra-micro and nanostructure morphology with a self-cleaning effect is not only found in lotus leaves, but also in other plants. This structure is also present in the fur of some animals.
This property can be applied to glass or to the radar of a fighter, for example, nano-treated glass itself can have a self-cleaning effect. There are also companies that use nanotechnology to treat paints, and objects coated with this paint also have a self-cleaning effect. Perhaps in a world of the future, we will continue to have non-dirty floors, walls, and dust-free radio supplies around us.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-center-line" > gecko with cornices</h1>
Geckos can crawl on any wall, stick backwards to the ceiling, or even hang upside down on the ceiling with one foot. It relies on nanotechnology.
In the past, people thought that geckos flying cornices were leaning against the magical suction cups on the soles of their feet, and with "suction", they were able to let their bodies roam freely in any three-dimensional space. But the truth is not as simple as people think.
Experts say the Gecko Walk relies not on suction cups, but on tens of thousands of tiny bristles on its toes. The roots of the bristles are tens of microns thick, and the tip is divided into many finer and more curved villi, each of which is only a few hundred nanometers in diameter, and its ends extend into a flat shape. This fine structure allows the gecko to approach the wall at a distance of a few nanometers. Although these villi are delicate, they are enough to make the so-called van der Waal bonds (some substances have polarity, in which part of the molecule carries a positive charge, while the other part of the molecule carries a negative charge, and the positive charge part of one molecule and the negative charge part of another molecule are attracted to each other by a weak electrostatic gravitational force, so that the two are combined, called van der Waal bonds or molecular bonds) to function, providing the gecko with millions of attachment points, thus supporting its weight. This adhesion can be easily broken by "peeling off", like tearing off the tape, so the gecko is able to freely pass through the ceiling.
In real life, experts try to make magical nanomaterials based on this and apply them widely to our lives. For example, we can make sneakers that grip the ground more firmly, and we can make car tires that no longer slip in rain and snow. In film and television drama shooting, actors can say goodbye to the computer in the studio and really show their skills on the glass curtain wall of the skyscraper. The climbing robot for space exploration developed according to this can walk on the outer surface of the space vehicle no matter what the harsh conditions, and give the aircraft a "physical examination".
<h1 class = "pgc-h-center-line" > shellfish – skilled glue masters</h1>
What we are referring to here is ordinary shellfish, that is, the kind of shellfish that we cook with vegetables and can often eat, which is a master of nano-bonding technology.
When a shellfish wants to attach itself to a rock, it opens the shell, attaches its tentacles to the rock, arches the antennae into a suction cup, and then injects countless strips of mucus and micelles into the low-pressure area through a thin tube: releasing a powerful underwater adhesive. These mucus and micelles instantly form foam and act as small mats. Shellfish are moored on this "shock absorber" by means of elastic foot filaments. This way, they can go undulating without getting hurt. This firm adhesive effect comes from the interaction between molecules at the mucus and rock nanoscales.
Based on the study, experts envision that a medical waterproof bio-glue may be developed in the future. This type of adhesive does not invade human cells or trigger the body's immune response, has a waterproof function, can be an ideal material for bonding broken bones and suturing soft tissues, and is also suitable for repairing tooth damage in wet mouths.
< h1 class = "pgc-h-center-line" > look at the sea snake tail of the six roads</h1>
The sea serpent's tail is a disc-shaped sea creature with carapace that resembles a starfish. It has 5 antennae and no eyes, but nevertheless, the sea serpent's tail is able to quickly perceive potential predators in the distance and indent the antennae into the shell in time. This sensitive feeling of the sea serpent's tail has long puzzled biologists.
Recently, the question has finally been answered on its carapace: the tail of the sea serpent is covered with "eyes," tens of thousands of perfect miniature convex lenses. In this way, the entire furry body constitutes its eyes that look at the six paths.
Studies have also shown that the lens on a sea snake's tail is about 50,000 to 100,000 a day, and they are all composed of nanocrystals of calcium carbonate. This perfect system of light-sensitive miniature lenses is the result of nanocrystallization of the surface of the body during the growth of the sea snake's tail. In order to prevent unnecessary color edges, during crystallization, the lens also absorbs an appropriate amount of magnesium, which can help the sea snake tail filter light more effectively, and can also correct the "spherical aberration" of the lens, thereby improving the efficiency of finding natural enemies.
Since the discovery of this property of sea snake tails, scientists have been studying the potential to apply it to technology. For example, the use of the characteristics of the sea snake's tail to create new optical instruments, or to provide clues for the future development of communication networks. Now most of the world's optical fibers are used in the communications industry,
Lenses are used to focus and reflect light from loaded digital communication signals. Scientists say the sea snake tail has 20 times the ability to focus light than existing artificial lenses, and by studying the sea snake tail, it is possible to increase the amount of information transmitted by the optical fibers.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-center-line" > bacteria: the fastest "running" creatures in the world</h1>
Bacteria are small, but their speed of movement is quite amazing, many bacteria travel tens of microns per second, a type of fungi called Vibrio comma, which can swim forward 100 microns per second. This number cannot be underestimated, it is equivalent to 50 times the length of the bacteria themselves; and a human athlete can only run forward 5,4 times the distance of its body length per second; even a cheetah who is good at sprinting can only reach 25 times. In this sense, bacteria should be the fastest "running" organisms in the world.
There are many members of the bacterial world, and there are differences in their movement methods and mechanisms, but most of the bacteria that can move rely on the action of their own motor organs, the flagella. Flagella is a long protein filament that attaches to the appearance of bacteria, generally 15 to 20 microns long and about 20 nanometers in diameter.
The function of the bacterial flagella is equivalent to the snail pulp of the boat, which can rotate at high speed in the water to push the bacterial body forward, so the water is the world where the flagellar bacteria can freely gallop. The rotation speed of the flagella is very fast, rotating 200 to 1000 revolutions per second, much faster than the general motor, the high-speed rotation of the flagella is driven by the rotation of the matrix attached to the fungus, the matrix is actually the base of the flagella, it is composed of 2 or 4 rings on a central shaft, embedded in the body surface of the bacteria (cell membrane and cell wall).
In the eyes of scientists, the matrix is simply a delicate nanomolecular motor, but this motor is not driven by electric current, but with the biological energy ATP produced with the disappearance of proton gradients on both sides of the cell membrane. The bacterial flagellar motor can also be steered (from counterclockwise rotation to clockwise rotation), causing the bacterium to tumble, which in turn changes the direction of the bacteria's movement. In fact, bacteria do not simply swim forward when swimming, but are accompanied by random rolling and turning from time to time, but from the appearance of the bacteria still appear to be moving forward.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-center-line" > water moose that walks freely on water</h1>
The small aquatic insect water moth is known as the "skater in the pond" because it can not only glide on the surface of the water, but also jump and play gracefully on the surface of the water like an ice skater. Its cleverness is that it neither scratches the surface of the water nor drenches its own legs.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" > how did the water stunt practice such a water stunt?</h1>
In this regard, researchers from the Institute of Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences published a paper in the international authoritative journal "Nature", unveiling the mystery of the "light work on the water" of the water ferret, and believed that the special micro and nano structure of the legs of the water weasel is the real reason.
It is an aquatic hemiptera insect that varies in size depending on the species. A medium-sized water shrew weighs about 30 milligrams, and the legs of the water shrew can drain 300 times the volume of water in its body, which is why this insect has extraordinary buoyancy.
The research team led by Jiang Lei found under a high-powered microscope that there were thousands of multi-layered micron-sized bristles arranged in the same direction on the legs of the water ferret. These needle-like micron bristles form spiral-shaped nanostructured grooves on the surface, and the bubbles adsorbed in the grooves form air cushions, which hinder the infiltration of water droplets and macroscopically exhibit the superhydrophobic properties of the water shrew legs (super strong non-water-free properties). It is this super load capacity that allows the water to move freely on the surface of the water, even in storms and rapidly flowing water.
This new discovery will help design new types of miniature water vehicles in the future.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" > bees located using a "compass"</h1>
Studies have shown that many organisms, including bees and turtles, have nano-sized magnetic particles in their bodies. These magnetic nanoparticles are important for the localization and motion behavior of organisms. The latest scientific research has found that there are magnetic nanoparticles in the abdomen of bees, which have a compass-like function, and bees use this "compass" to determine their surroundings, using images stored in magnetic nanoparticles to determine the direction. When the bees return from honey collection, they are actually comparing the images they originally stored with the images they saw along the way. If the two images are consistent, you can determine where the hive is located.
Using this nano-magnetic particle for navigation, bees can complete a journey of thousands of meters.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-center-line" > colorful butterflies</h1>
Butterflies are fascinated by the variety and brilliant patterns on their wings. It also leaves biologists wondering: How are butterflies' dazzling colors formed, and what are the different meanings?
Recently, Dr. Giraldo of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands found a way to solve this problem. After studying the surfaces of the wings of butterflies and other butterflies, Dr. Giraldo revealed the secret: the nanostructures on the wings are precisely the butterflies' "color factories."
His research shows that the dazzling colors on butterfly wings come from a tiny scaly substance that resembles a tiny colored lamp on a Christmas tree that refracts the colours of the light. The color on a butterfly's wings is actually a sign of identity. The wings of different colors allow thousands of butterflies to recognize their companions from a long distance, and even distinguish whether the other party is male or female.
Through electron microscopy, Dr. Giraldo found that the structure of the wings of the pink butterfly is very peculiar; although different species of butterflies have different structures of scales, they still have common characteristics with each other. In general, butterfly wings consist of two layers of scales that are only 3 to 4 microns thick, and the upper layer of scales alternates like tiny roof tiles, and the structure of each scale is also very complicated. The next layer is smoother. This orderly arrangement of butterfly wings forms what is known as photon crystals, or nanostructures. Through this structure, butterfly wings are able to capture light. Only let a certain wavelength of light pass through. This determines the different colors.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" > spider that spits silk</h1>
Cobwebs often appear in the corners of rooms that have not been cleaned for a long time. For ordinary people, spider webs are not a great thing, and with a flick of a broom, the cobwebs are swept away. But spider silk itself is indeed a miracle of nature. Spider silk in nature is about 100 nanometers in diameter and is a true pure natural nanofiber. If spider silk is made of rope as thick as ordinary wire rope, it can lift objects weighing thousands of tons, and its strength can be comparable to that of steel rope.
In addition to being used to catch flying insects, almost all spiders also use spider silk as a finger route, safety rope, and glide rope. Spiders usually have several glands in their abdomen, called silk spittors. Various glands produce different types of spider silk, the gland has a spin-on head at the top, there are thousands of small holes on it, and the liquid emitted condenses into viscous and high-tension spider silk as soon as it encounters air. Usually, 1000 spider silks are 1/10 thinner than human hair.