one screens,” she said.
The way the technology works is that it manipulates light by creating nanostructures that can be put on an item’s surface. The surfaces will also provide superior wear-resistant properties compared with coated solutions and will offer new self-cleaning and anti-microbial properties.
“This technology has been inspired by nature,” Dr Mokarian explained. “If an insect’s eye reflects light, when they look at their prey they will see the reflection and escape. So, nature made the structure in the insect’s eyes so their prey wouldn’t see the reflection. We’re trying to bio-mimic that,” she added.
Aside from car interiors and the optics industry, consumers could find it on their mobile phone screens in the not too distant future. The nanostructures could ultimately suppress the light reflection from the surface so, on a sunny day, people would still be able to see their screens.
Of course, all of these uses are some time off. The project won’t end until December 2021 and at that point, the researchers expect it to be in “proof of concept” phase. After that it will need to be scaled up so that it can be used for manufacturing purposes.
That also requires it to be relatively cost-effective. “If the money doesn’t make sense, nobody will go for it,” Dr Mokarian said. But for certain industries it could make more financial sense than others.
For the solar industry, as an example, the technology would be perfect for solar cells because it captures every photon of light, according to Dr Mokarian. While it would improve efficiency for that industry, it would have to be relatively cheap because people are only willing to pay so much for electricity.
In the biomedical sector, however, price isn’t as much of an issue with individuals and health providers willing to pay for technologies that make the provision of health more comfortable and safer for patients. With this technology you can reduce the size of cameras being sent into a patient’s body without reducing the level of light. The result is a considerably less invasive surgery for patients without compromising on quality.
While some estimates put the global market for anti-reflection coatings at more than $6.1 billion (€5.17bn) per year by 2021, they have yet to take off because of the high cost of the current technology and the lack of durability in challenging environments.
The advantage of Dr Mokarian’s “Zeroptica” technology is that, as it is solution based, it can be applied to curved surfaces and large areas. Additionally, it doesn’t require expensive equipment or harsh chemicals – both of which can be costly.
While Dr Mokarian and her team have achieved significant funding from both the European Horizon 2020 scheme as well as industry. She recently won an award at the Trinity Innovation Awards.
Dr Mokarian is a senior research fellow at materials centre Amber, which is funded by the Science Foundation Ireland. Including Amber, the project involves 13 partners from six European countries included five multinational companies, four small and medium enterprises, two universities and two research institutes.