Abstract

The antifogging properties of mosquito compound eyes (see figure) result from their elaborate superhydrophobic surface structure, which consists of hexagonally non-close-packed nipples at the nanoscale and hexagonally close-packed hemispheres at the microscale. A soft-lithography approach is adopted to fabricate artificial compound eyes for exploring the effects of the hierarchical micro- and nanostructure on surface hydrophobicity. Supporting information for this article is available on the WWW under http://www.wiley-vch.de/contents/jc_2089/2007/c1946_s.html or from the author. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.