Need a UV photographer for scientific project

[nfoto]

I'm forwarding the request below, in the hope that members of UVP can provide the required service

Birna

 

My name is Richard Greene. I live in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

 

I am involved in a scientific project that is researching a rare arthropod parasite - an avian mite. This is a parasite of birds that uses an evolutionary adaptation to cloak itself from the keen eyesight of birds so that it cannot be seen in the visible light spectrum. This is accomplished by generating a double negative index of refraction, which causes light waves to bend around it, without scattering or leaving a shadow, and thus rendering it invisible. This phenomenon has only recently been discovered by theoretical and applied physicists (see Sir John Pendry's work). But the cloak cannot hide something  through the entire electromagnetic spectrum - therefore it must be visible in either or both the UV or IR spectrum. We are looking for a UV photographer / videographer with a deep interest in science and  scientific photography who will capture this elusive arthropod in digital media. We are working with both Dan Llewellyn and Ilija Melentijevic as advisors and using their cameras. This will be an important discovery of wide interest to the scientific community, and should be a valuable career achievement for the successful photographer. We would appreciate your help in bringing this opportunity to the attention of your membership.

 

best regards,

Richard Greene

 

Our contact address is:

 

Richard Greene

3070 Windward Plaza Suite F-127

Alpharetta, Georgia 30005

tel: 001-305-921-9749

email: richardgreene47@gmail.com

[lukaszgryglicki]

I'm interested if I can help in any way, contacted directly.

 

[Andrea B.]

Given that avian mites are less than 1mm in length, I'm thinking that micro objectives might be required? Not many people have those with a capability for UV.

 

If not, then the applicant should have access to a UV-Nikor/UV-Rayfact with extensions or a CO 60 with extensions. And probably have some experience in stacking for DoF.

[Andrea B.]

 OK my head is hurting from trying to figure out this doubly left-handed thing.
 

If the mite can negatively refract the visible light hitting it and then negatively refract it again, then the vis light flows around it. 

 

Many birds have UV vision. If the birds cannot see this avian mite, then it must be somehow be making the UV flow around it? And only reflecting IR? 

 

I had to edit this to make sense.

I got lost on this topic.

^{Oh well.}

[Andy Perrin]

The cloaking stuff is well-known, and has been around for like 20 years or so. I'm not surprised some critter has taken advantage of it to hide. I do think this is a heck of a challenge, to capture a 1mm object in UV that won't hold still!

 

Andrea, I know that birds in general can see UV, but not sure if that's true for ALL birds and what the sensitivity is either. If the predator bird isn't that UV-sensitive, hiding it in visible light might be decent camouflage?

[andreatestmember]

Andy:  hiding it in visible light might be decent camouflage?

Oh definitely! My speculation is simply that the mite might also have a UV cloak given that so many birds can detect some UV in some range.

 

Andy: I do think this is a heck of a challenge, to capture a 1mm object in UV that won't hold still!

There are some insects which can be "chilled" to restrict their motion. But that wouldn't make the mite any bigger. 

 

The double negative refraction is a really complex topic. Quite interesting! 

 

[Andy Perrin]

58 minutes ago, andreatestmember said:

Oh definitely! My speculation is simply that the mite might also have a UV cloak given that so many birds can detect some UV in some range.

 

The thing is that cloaking across a broad range of spectrum like that has proven to be a very difficult problem, and it gets harder the shorter the wavelength is because the necessary structures need to shrink with the wavelength. When I was doing my PhD circa 2002-2008 one of my friends was working on cloaking and so I have heard a lot about this topic (most of it over lunch). The limitation was actually to single wavelengths in the microwave region at that time, never mind all of visible light! 

 

I don't know the current status of the research though, and still less about what the animal kingdom might have come up with by evolution.

[KhanhDam]

did he every find a phtoographer? I'd love to see the resulting photos?