Beetle feet stick to thei...( Mushroom-shaped microhairs are the sec...)

Mushroom-shaped microhairs are the secret of a new adhesive material which scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart have developed. Inspired by the soles of beetles' feet, and therefore biomimetic, the special surface structure of the material allows it to stick to smooth walls without any adhesives. Potential applications range from reusable adhesive tape to shoe soles for climbing robots and are therefore of considerable relevance to technology (Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 17 October 2006).

It has been known for some time how insects, spiders and geckos have such a remarkable talent for walking on walls and ceilings. Extremely thin hairs literally stick their feet to the wall and the larger the animal, the finer the hairs. Geckos, which are heavy compared to a fly, have been using nanotechnology for this purpose for millions of years (cf. MPS press releases [1-4]). According to findings made by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart, the shape of the fibres is also significant; for example, spatula-shaped ends on the hairs provide particularly strong adhesion.

These discoveries aroused great expectations. Is it possible to simply copy the structure of the soles of insects' feet and before long find equivalent biomimetic, i.e. nature-inspired, adhesive materials in everyday use? The researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research and their colleauges at Gottlieb Binder GmbH in Holzgerlingen, a specialist company for fastener systems, needed plenty of staying power themselves, because the first generations of the surfaces they created with a variety of methods were not effective adhesives.

However, the scientists have now taken a big step forwards in copying the biological adhesive mechanism. They have developed a material with a biomimetic microstructure that exhibits excellent adhesive qualities, basing it on investigations of the foot soles of
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Contact: Stanislav Gorb
s.gorb@mf.mpg.de
48-711-689-3414
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
3-Nov-2006