Mid infrared band gap properties of 3-dimensional silicon inverse opal photonic crystal

By the solvent vaporization convection self-assembly method, 1.86 μm silica microspheres were assembled into a colloidal crystal template with long-range order. High refractive index silicon was then filled in the voids of the silica template by the low pressure chemical vapor deposition method. A 3-dimensional silicon inverse opal photonic crystal was obtained with a photonic band gap simulated by a plane wave expansion method. Its micro modality and photonic band gap properties were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform IR spectrometer. There was a good agreement between the measured spectra and the simulated results. The tilt-angle reflectance spectra showed that an obvious reflection peak at 3319 nm stayed in existence with different incidence directions. This result proved that silicon inverse opal has a complete photonic band gap in the mid infrared range. This study opens up an opportunity to create Si-based photonic crystal devices for atmosphere mid infrared photodetection.