Experimental study of the photonic band structure of synthetic opals at a low dielectric contrast

This paper reports on a comprehensive study of optical transmissivity spectra of synthetic opals as a function of the four major parameters of the observed photonic stop bands, namely, light beam orientation relative to the opal fcc lattice, light polarization, opal-filler dielectric permittivity contrast, and sample thickness. The measurements were performed under low opal-filler dielectric contrast conditions for the principal high-symmetry directions of the twinned fcc lattice of the opals. The experimentally determined dependence of the energy positions of photonic stop bands on the direction of the light wave vector is fitted well by the calculated dispersion relation of Bragg wavelengths in diffraction of light from the (hkl) fcc plane system.     

Optical characterization of synthetic opals

The results of a structural-optical characterization of synthetic opals are presented. Information on the growth-induced features of the opal structure was derived from an analysis of the position and width of the one-dimensional photonic band gap. The structure of the samples was found to vary substantially along the growth axis coinciding with the [111] direction of the fcc lattice. It was shown that the regions corresponding to early stages in the opal structure growth are typically strongly disordered, which manifests itself, in particular, in the crystallites being misoriented relative to the sample growth axis. It was concluded that the regions of synthetic opals most suitable for application as photonic crystals are those corresponding to later growth stages.     

Photonic band structure of 3D ordered silica matrices

The symmetry and orientation of a photonic lattice of 3D ordered porous silica matrices (synthetic opals) are determined by analysis of transmission electron micrographs. By optical transmission measurements the photonic band edges are mapped out at pointsLandKof the Brillouin zone. It is shown that modulating the refractive index of opal pores by filling them with liquids results in variation of the light attenuation length within the forbidden gap. To increase the refractive index contrast of the lattice, the pores of opals were filled with CdS. A dramatic decrease in attenuation length is observed for opal/CdS. The parameters of a photonic lattice with a ‘pseudo-gap’, that is, with a prominent depletion of the photonic density of states, are estimated.     

High Miller-index photonic bands in synthetic opals

We present a detailed study of high Miller-index (h k l) photonic bands in a-SiO₂ synthetic opals. Polarized light transmission spectra of opals were studied in a wide wavelength range for all high symmetry directions on the Brillouin zone (BZ) in the face-centered cubic (fcc) lattice. It is shown that under the conditions of low dielectric contrast the dispersion of high Miller-index photonic bands is described well by the calculated dependences of Bragg wavelengths diffracted from the (h k l) crystallographic planes of the fcc lattice.     

Anisotropy of light propagation in thin opal films

Thin opal films are prepared by crystallization in a moving meniscus, and their optical transmission spectra are recorded in polarized light and studied. It is shown that the anisotropy of light propagation in the films is unambiguously related to the photonic band structure of opal and depends on the angle of incidence, the orientation of the incidence plane with respect to the opal lattice, and the wavelength and polarization of the incident light. Azimuthal diagrams of transmitted polarized light are constructed in the range of photonic band gaps of three orders for oblique incidence of a light beam. The anisotropy is found to vary with the light wave-length independently in perpendicular polarizations. A model of the band structure of opal wherein opal is represented as an fcc lattice of close-packed spheres adequately describes the optical transmission of opal films only in the range of the first-order photonic band gap.     

On dip broadening in transmission spectra of synthetic opals

This paper reports on a comprehensive immersion spectroscopy study of the spectral position and profile of the dip corresponding to the (111) photonic band in the transmission spectra of synthetic opals. The variation in the opal-filler permittivity contrast in the region of the immersion-mediated disappearance of the (111) band has revealed its anomalous abrupt behavior. The width of the (111) photonic band at the L point of the Brillouin zone of the fcc lattice has been calculated as a function of the opal-filler permittivity contrast in the plane wave approximation. The experimentally observed (111) dip width is found to be substantially larger than that obtained in the calculations, which can be due to deviations in the size and dielectric parameters of the a-SiO₂ particles making up synthetic opals.     

三维光子晶体典型结构完全禁带的最佳参数理论分析

基于平面波展开法，理论分析了晶格结构、填充率、介电常数比等因素对fcc，diamond，woodpile三种三维光子晶体典型结构完全禁带的影响.三种结构中，fcc结构由于高对称性导致的能级简并，只适用于密堆积排列的反蛋白石结构；diamond结构非常容易产生高带隙率的完全禁带，并且可以通过调节多项参数得到所需的完全禁带；woodpile结构参数调节范围比较宽，为实验制备带来方便.对于不同的三维光子晶体结构，随着介电常数比的增大，完全禁带的宽度和带隙率也会随着增大.还发现了一些以前未引起注意的现象. 关键词： 三维光子晶体 完全禁带 介电常数比 带隙率 平面波展开法     

溶胶凝胶法制备圆柱形大孔二氧化硅反蛋白石结构晶体

利用溶胶凝胶法在不同直径的毛细管表面制备了圆柱形二氧化硅反蛋白石多孔结构.利用扫描电子显微镜表征了其形貌,发现胶体晶体的类(111)面结构整体为圆柱形,平行于毛细管表面.透射光谱结果表明,二氧化硅多孔结构在[111]方向具有典型的光子带隙效应,与布拉格理论相符合,有望应用到光通讯和传感领域.     

Modelling of 3D photonic crystals based on opals

The construction of 3D photonic crystals with gaps in the visible or the near-infrared frequency range requires engineering of complex microstructures which are very difficult to realize by etching and micro-fabrication. Consequently, self-ordered systems such as synthetic opals are very promising. Synthetic bare opals are constituted by SiO₂ spheres that organize themselves by a sedimentation process in a face centered cubic (fcc) arrangement. Using the plane wave method, we examine the photonic band structures of close-packed opal-based photonic crystals with an SiO₂ (n = 1.5) matrix. The incomplete photonic band gaps at the X- and L-points have been studied which correspond to normally incident plane waves onto the (100) and (111) crystal planes. With the transfer matrix method, we model the transmission properties. We find that the incomplete gap at the L-point fully inhibits the transmission of waves propagating in the [111] direction for opal sample thicknesses that are easily obtainable. This property shows that bare opals could be good candidates for complete inhibition of transmission in the near-infrared and visible frequency range for given orientations.     

Inverted yablonovite fabricated by the direct laser writing method and its photonic structure

Three-dimensional photonic crystals with an inverted yablonovite structure have been fabricated by the direct laser writing method based on the two-photon polymerization of a photosensitive material. The correspondence of the structure of the samples to the inverted yablonovite lattice has been confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. The photonic band structure of inverted yablonovite, as well as a number of related photonic materials with an fcc lattice, has been calculated. It has been found that the photonic properties of opal and yablonovite are opposite: the complete photonic band gap appears in inverted opal and direct yablonovite and is absent in direct opal and inverted yablonovite. A method for the fabrication of ideal three-dimensional photonic structures having the complete photonic band gap in the infrared and visible spectral ranges has been discussed.     

Investigation of luminescence properties in SiO2: Tb,Yb upconversion inverse opal

The SiO₂: Tb, Yb inverse opals with photonic band gap at 465 or 543 nm were prepared, and an effect of photonic band gap on upconversion spontaneous emission from Tb³⁺ was investigated. The results show that the photonic band gap has a significant influence on the upconversion emission of the SiO₂: Tb, Yb inverse opals. The upconversion luminescence of the Tb³⁺ ions is suppressed in the inverse opal compared with the luminescence of that of the reference sample.     

Template-directed self-organized silica beads on square and Penrose-like patterns

Since a decade photonic band gap research is expanding quickly and especially with self-assembled silica beads, called opals. However, a lot of problems are arising in their preparation, in particular the difficulty to produce large frequencies band gaps in common (periodic) silica photonic materials. To solve this problem quasiperiodic opals are known to be good candidates. Actually, the high degree of isotropy and the high homogeneity of Penrose tilings make them a good way to generate complete photonic band gaps. The aim of our group is to elaborate quasiperiodic photonic crystals by directed-assembly (dip-coating) on Penrose-like patterned surfaces (through electron beam lithography). We will briefly present the different elaboration steps of our opals. Thus, the patterning methods and the dip-coating system will be discussed with our recent results in dip-coated photonic crystals.     

高频区具有大带隙的二维像素型光子晶体结构

针对方块像素组成的二维光子晶体，传统平面波展开法可经修正使之收敛速度大大提高。采用快速算法，在高频区域找到了一种具有稳定的较大绝对禁带宽度的GaAs光子晶体结构，绝对禁带宽度为0．0995ωc(ωc-2π／α，α为晶格常量，c为光速)，中心频率为1．2625ω。     

Ultrasmall-angle X-ray scattering analysis of photonic crystal structure

The results of an ultrasmall-angle X-ray scattering study of iron(III) oxide inverse opal thin films are presented. The photonic crystals examined are shown to have fcc structure with amount of stacking faults varying among the samples. The method used in this study makes it possible to easily distinguish between samples with predominantly twinned fcc structure and nearly perfect fcc stacking. The difference observed between samples fabricated under identical conditions is attributed to random layer stacking in the self-assembled colloidal crystals used as templates for fabricating the inverse opals. The present method provides a versatile tool for analyzing photonic crystal structure in studies of inverse opals made of various materials, colloidal crystals, and three-dimensional photonic crystals of other types.     

Propagation of polarized light in opals: Amplitude and phase anisotropy

The interaction of linearly polarized light with photonic crystals based on bulk and thin-film synthetic opals is studied. Experimental transmission spectra and spectra showing the polarization state of light transmitted through opals are discussed. A change in polarization is found for waves experiencing Bragg diffraction from systems of crystallographic planes of the opal lattice. It is shown that the polarization plane of the incident linearly polarized wave at the exit from photonic crystals can be considerably rotated. In addition, incident linearly polarized light can be transformed to elliptically polarized light with the turned major axis of the polarization ellipse. Analysis of polarization states of transmitted light by using the transfer-matrix theory and homogenization theory revealed good agreement between calculated and experimental spectra.     

二维单斜点阵光子晶体的第一布里渊区及带隙计算

二维单斜点阵光子晶体在光学聚焦器件及光子晶体波导中有重要的应用价值，详细讨论了二维单斜点阵光子晶体的第一布里渊区及带隙计算，并与常规方法计算得出的二维正三角形晶格光子晶体的带隙结构进行了比较.最后讨论了临界条件下二维单斜点阵光子晶体的带隙结构，证明了本方法的有效性.     

Magnetophotonic properties of inverse magnetic metal opals

Nickel inverse opals were fabricated by templating a colloidal crystal. Perfect fcc ordering was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. Several kinds of magneto-optical effects were studied: linear longitudinal and transversal Kerr effects, nonlinear longitudinal Kerr effect (magnetization-induced second harmonic generation), which were all consistent with the photonic band structure studied by reflectivity spectroscopy.     

Controlling the photoluminescence spectroscopy of quinacrine dihydrochloride by SiO_2 inverse opal photonic crystal

Manipulation of the photoluminescence spectra of light-emitting materials doped in three-dimensional （3D） inverse opal photonic crystals is investigated. Quinacrine dihydrochloride molecules doped highly ordered SiO2 inverse opal is successfully synthesized by co-assembly combined with double-substrate vertical infiltrate method. The quinacrine dihydrochloride-doped and-undoped SiO2 inverse opals each exhibit an apparent photonic band gap （PBG） in the visible light region. Significant suppression of the emission is observed when the PBG is overlapped with the quinacrine dihydrochloride emission bands. The mechanism of suppression effect of PBG in inverse opal on the fluorescence intensity of quinacrine dihydrochloride molecules is studied.     

在高频区存在巨带隙的长方晶格二维光子晶体

本文利用降低光子晶体的对称性来提高绝对禁带宽度, 提出两种长方结构长方介质柱二维光子晶体, 用快速平面波展开法研究其高频区的带结构.经参数优化发现, 长方晶格包含一套介质柱时, 最大绝对禁带宽度Δω为0.1265ωe（ωe=2πc/a, a为晶格常数, c为光速）, 绝对禁带中心频率ωmid为1.9256ωe, Δω/ωmid=6.6%; 当长方晶格包含两套介质柱时, 最大绝对禁带宽度为0.203ωe, 绝对禁带中心频率为1.8597ωe, Δω/ωmid=10.9%.     

不同结构光子晶体的带隙特性

基于平面波展开法研究光子晶体的带隙特性,数值模拟了横磁波和横电波在三角晶格和正方晶格构成的二维光子晶体中的带隙特性,得到了三角晶格较正方晶格更容易出现带隙,且三角晶格的横电波光子带隙较大.实验结果为光子晶体器件的设计提供理论依据.