Domain structure and optical properties of colloidal photonic crystal

Thin colloidal photonic crystals were grown using shear-flow crystallization of polystyrene colloidal nanoparticles. The arrays consist of two types of domains, which are clearly visible on scanning electron microscopy patterns. Both domains have cubic close packing and are distinguished by their orientation with regards to substrate surface. The positions of the main minima in the visible-near-IR transmittance spectrum of the arrays as well as the dependence of these minima on the angle of the light incidence have been measured and interpreted using photon band structure of the two-component media.