Mesostructure of the Exoskeleton of the Lobster Homarus americanus

摘要

The exoskeleton of the lobster Homarus americanus is a multiphase bio-composite which consists of a fibrous organic matrix (crystalline a-chitin and various types of non-crystalline proteins) and embedded biominerals (mainly calcite). In this study we present experimental data about the microscopic and mesoscopic structure of this material.