Melanin has been a widely researched pigment by scientists for decades as it is undoubtedly the most ubiquitous and ancient pigment found in nature. Melanin plays very significant roles in structural plumage colors in birds: it has visible light-absorbing capabilities, and nanoscale structures can be formed by self-assembling melanin granules. Herein, we review recent progress on melanin-based structural coloration research. We hope that this review will provide current understanding of melanin’s structural and optical properties, natural coloration mechanisms, and biomimetic methods to implement artificial melanin-based structural colors.

中文翻译：

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基于黑色素的鸟类结构着色及其仿生应用

几十年来，黑色素一直是科学家们广泛研究的色素，因为它无疑是自然界中发现的最普遍和最古老的色素。黑色素在鸟类的结构羽毛颜色中起着非常重要的作用：它具有吸收可见光的能力，并且可以通过自组装黑色素颗粒形成纳米级结构。在此，我们回顾了基于黑色素的结构着色研究的最新进展。我们希望这篇综述能够提供对黑色素结构和光学特性、自然着色机制和仿生方法的当前理解，以实现基于人工黑色素的结构颜色。