Self-assembly of biomimetic, linear and nonlinear photonic crystals

Photonic crystals (PhCs) produce nature’s most brilliant colors. While understanding their color-forming mechanisms has advanced, their evolution and biomimetic fabrication remain in their infancy. Our research explores how photonic crystals form in nature and how to engineer them biomimetically. We work with lipidic lyotropic liquid crystals from molecular building blocks found in butterflies and beetles. Additionally, we aim to create disordered and nonlinear photonic crystals from self-assembled nanosized blocks to study fundamental physics questions like inhibited spontaneous emission [1] and Anderson localization in three dimensions [2]. Analyzing their periodicities and phases helps design optimal photonic crystals. USAXS and SAXS provide a powerful, non-destructive tool for these parameters, complementing FIB tomography and cryo-TEM. We expect combining scattering and electron microscopy techniques to drive advances in fundamental physics and biomimetic PhC fabrication.