Signatures of light-beam spatial filtering in a three-dimensional photonic crystal

We report experimental evidence of spatial filtering of light beams by three-dimensional, low-refraction-index-contrast photonic crystals. The photonic crystals were fabricated in a glass bulk, where the refraction index has been periodically modulated using tightly focused femtosecond laser pulses. We observe filtered areas in the angular distributions of the transmitted radiation, and we interpret the observations by theoretical and numerical study of light propagation in index-modulated material in paraxial model.