Abstract Optical devices have been traditionally fabricated using materials whose chemical and physical properties are finely tuned to perform a specific, single, and often static function, whereby devices’ variability is achieved by design changes. Due to the integration of optical systems in multifunctional platforms, there is an increasing need for intrinsic dynamic behavior, such as devices built with materials whose optical response can be programmed to change by leveraging the material’s variability. Here, regenerated silk fibroin is presented as an enabler of devices with active optical response due to the protein’s intrinsic properties. Silk’s abilities to controllably change conformation, reversibly swell and shrink, and degrade in a programmable way affect the form and the response of the optical structure in which it is molded. Representative silk-based devices whose behavior depends on the silk variability are presented and discussed with a particular focus on structures that display reconfigurable, reversibly tunable and physically transient optical responses. Finally, new research directions are envisioned for silk-based optical materials and devices.

中文翻译：

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有源光学丝

摘要 传统上，光学器件是使用化学和物理特性经过精细调整以执行特定、单一且通常是静态功能的材料制造的，从而通过设计更改来实现器件的可变性。由于在多功能平台中集成了光学系统，因此对内在动态行为的需求不断增加，例如用材料构建的设备，其光学响应可以通过利用材料的可变性进行编程来改变。在这里，由于蛋白质的内在特性，再生丝素蛋白被作为具有主动光学响应的​​设备的推动者。丝绸可控地改变构象、可逆膨胀和收缩以及以可编程方式降解的能力影响其成型的光学结构的形式和响应。展示和讨论了具有代表性的基于丝的设备，其行为取决于丝的可变性，特别关注显示可重构、可逆可调和物理瞬态光学响应的​​结构。最后，为丝基光学材料和器件设想了新的研究方向。