Electrochemical fabrication of 3D microperiodic porous materials

Dielectric structures that exhibit periodicity in all three dimensions such as photonic crystals and photonic bandgap materials can be used in low loss waveguides, low threshold lasers, optical switching elements and radically improved photochemical reactors. It was found that electrochemical deposition within a colloidal template can be used in the production of high refractive index contrast, three dimensional microperiodic porous materials. Such three-dimensionally microperiodic metallic structures exhibit unique mechanical and thermal properties.