Biomimetics: Learning from diamonds

Abstract

There is increasing observational evidence for an implication of the order of interfacial water layers in biology, for instance in processes of cellular recognition and during first contact events, where cells decide to survive or enter apoptosis. Experimental methods that allow access to the order of interfacial water layers are thus crucial in biomedical engineering. In this study, we show that interfacial water structures can be nondestructively analyzed on the nanocrystalline diamond. Results open the gate to a new chapter in the design of biomaterials inspired by biomimetic principles.