Photonic Crystals and its Self-assembling Preparation

Since the theoretical calculations pointed out that the diamond structure possesses complete photonic band gap, significant attention has been paid to the theoretical research and the experimental fabrication of three-dimensional photonic crystals. On the whole, there are two methods for preparation of photonic crystals: microfabrication and self-assembly. The former adapts to preparing photonic crystals in the microwave, far-infrared or near-infrared region, however, the latter has the special advantages of preparing photonic crystals in the near-infrared, visible and even more shorter wavelength region. The concepts and basic characteristics of photonic crystals are presented, and a review of the methods for self-assembly preparation of three-dimensional photonic crystals is given.