Optical properties of a photonic crystal of hollow spherical shells

We report on optical transmission studies of three-dimensionally ordered photonic crystals of close-packed spherical shells. These samples are fabricated using a double-template method, which allows for extensive control over shell thickness. The transmission spectra exhibit an optical stop band, whose spectral position and width depend on the thickness of the shell and on the overlap between adjacent spheres, in a manner consistent with numerical simulations. These parameters can be controlled over a wide range, thus permitting systematic studies of the optical properties, and providing a valuable method for engineering the characteristics of the optical stop band in colloidal photonic media. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)01644-2].