Fabrication of Fe-wings used for micro imprinting with a natural butterfly wing structure by in situ carbothermic reduction

We demonstrate a simple and promising method for the preparation of large-area natural microstructured Fe-wings which combines biotemplating and biomimetic techniques using natural structures as templates. The replicas were robust and hydrophobic, and also possessed excellent magnetic properties. The micro-structures of the wing scales were accurately retained. Then these replicas were used as stamps to transcribe their micro-structures to the surface of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and the stamps were subsequently separated from the PDMS with ease by a magnet. In this method, as the samples are not detached from the PDMS elastomer by mechanical means, the microstructure of PDMS is not destroyed, and levels of anti-counterfeiting can be improved distinctly by adjusting the imprinting parameters.