Colourific beetle holds the key to LCD TVs

There's an interesting story in The Times today about how scientists believe a beetle could help shape the future of flat screen TVs, mobile phones and laptops.

Even though the beetle is actually a mixture of red, yellow and green, laid out in a honeycomb pattern, when looked at by a human eye it appears green.

The secret is in the structure of the shell. The beetle is made up of fibres similar to those that form the human fingernail. These fibres channel lightwaves, which are absorbed by the beetle, "except for very specific shades of red, green and yellow, which they reflect".

Sharon Jewell, of the University of Exeter, told The Times that the beetle’s shell will provide clues to improve LEDs so they produce purer light. “If we can mimic the method used by the beetle and use it in LCDs we can produce high quality, intense colour without the same need for a power supply,” she said.

If scientists can combine this with technology such as OLED (used for the super-thin Sony TVs above), then it would allow manufacturers to build extremely bright, highly energy efficient TVs in the future.

She has since found five more beetles with the same reflective powers, all of them appearing green to humans.

Full story: Beetle that could colour the future of TV