AI Article Synopsis
- The Oriental hornet workers adjust their digging behavior based on sunlight exposure, relying on their cuticle's ability to absorb solar radiation.
- The cuticle has a unique structure that minimizes light reflection and maximizes light absorption, enhancing the hornet's efficiency in utilizing solar energy.
- The study also demonstrates that xanthopterin in the hornet's cuticle can be harnessed as a light-absorbing molecule using a dye-sensitized solar cell.
Article Abstract
The Oriental hornet worker correlates its digging activity with solar insolation. Solar radiation passes through the epicuticle, which exhibits a grating-like structure, and continues to pass through layers of the exo-endocuticle until it is absorbed by the pigment melanin in the brown-colored cuticle or xanthopterin in the yellow-colored cuticle. The correlation between digging activity and the ability of the cuticle to absorb part of the solar radiation implies that the Oriental hornet may harvest parts of the solar radiation. In this study, we explore this intriguing possibility by analyzing the biophysical properties of the cuticle. We use rigorous coupled wave analysis simulations to show that the cuticle surfaces are structured to reduced reflectance and act as diffraction gratings to trap light and increase the amount absorbed in the cuticle. A dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) was constructed in order to show the ability of xanthopterin to serve as a light-harvesting molecule.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00114-010-0728-1 | DOI Listing |
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