Phys.org  December 16, 2024 Conventional methods used to produce these microparticle components frequently offer limited control of their structural properties or require low-throughput nanofabrication of more complex structures. An international team of researchers (USA – University of Rochester, University of Colorado, the Netherlands) used a synthetic biology approach to produce environmentally friendly, living microlenses with tunable structural properties. They engineered Escherichia coli bacteria to display the silica biomineralization enzyme silicate from aquatic sea sponges which could self-assemble a shell of polysilicate “bioglass” around themselves. The bacteria could focus light into intense nanojets that were nearly an order of magnitude brighter […]