Reflectin-Enabled Dynamically Tunable Photonics

We are investigating and leveraging how cephalopods (squid, octopus, and cuttlefish) manipulate light with sub-wavelength structures and reflectin protein assembly to create artificial, bio-enabled systems and devices with dynamically tunable color response. This work is based on electrochemical triggering of genetically engineered reflectin to modify the optical behavior of metallic nanostructures that couple strongly with light. The goal of the project is to understand, engineer, control, and incorporate reflectin into novel optical devices and develop a new paradigm for bio-enabled photonics.