Issue 31, 2016

Surfactant-free HEMA crystal colloidal paint for structural color contact lens

Abstract

Structural color originates from physical interactions of light with submicron ordered structures. Structural color is also the optimal candidate as a method for coloring contact lenses because of its vivid iridescence and being free of pigment. Here, we report a facile approach for fabricating a novel structural color contact lens by decorating with structural color paint through UV polymerization in a mould. The paints were fabricated by dispersing poly(methyl methacrylate-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PMH) nanoparticles in 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) solvent without additional surfactants. The obtained structural color contact lenses showed high light transmission as well as gorgeous structural color, varying by adjusting the particle sizes. Moreover, cell viability assay and cell morphology observation revealed that the structural color contact lenses are cytocompatible. With high light transmission, gorgeous structural color, as well as good cytocompatibility, the structural color contact lenses are very promising as potential substitutes of traditional color contact lenses dyed by chemical pigments.

Graphical abstract: Surfactant-free HEMA crystal colloidal paint for structural color contact lens

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
01 May 2016
Accepted
05 Jul 2016
First published
05 Jul 2016

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2016,4, 5222-5227

Surfactant-free HEMA crystal colloidal paint for structural color contact lens

P. Liu, Z. Xie, F. Zheng, Y. Zhao and Z. Gu, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2016, 4, 5222 DOI: 10.1039/C6TB01089J

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements