Biotemplating routes to three-dimensional photonic crystals
Abstract
The strikingly colorful world of insects is in large part the result of light interacting with periodically organized biopolymeric structures incorporated into wings, hairs and exoskeletons. Such structural colors have recently gained tremendous interest as photonic crystals with their ability to control the behavior of light in revolutionary new ways. This highlight article reviews recent developments in employing biological structures as unique templates for the fabrication of inorganic photonic crystals. Different biotemplating methods, including