This structure may be likened to a photonic crystal.

It covers the examination of new optical materials, especially of photonic crystal fibres, and more generally the field of nano- and micro-structured photonic materials.

The chitin walls of the hollow bristles form a hexagonal honeycomb-shaped photonic crystal; the hexagonal holes are 0.51 metre apart.

The periodicity of the photonic crystal structure must be around half the wavelength of the electromagnetic waves that are to be diffracted.

This was made possible by growing a photonic crystal and projecting a laser beam into the crystal.