Natural layer-by-layer photonic structure in the squamae of Hoplia coerulea (Coleoptera)

The microscopic structure of the hard external parts of the body of the iridescent blue-violet chaffer beetle Hoplia coerulea is studied using scanning electron microscopy. The blue iridescence is shown to originate from the structure of the squamae within scales covering the dorsal side of the beetle. The internal structure of the scales shows a stack of planar sheets, separated by a well-organized network of spacers, a structure which belongs to the family of the layer-by-layer photonic crystals. The blue iridescence is easily explained by a planar multilayer approximation model, deduced from the observed three-dimensional structure.