Formation of colorimetric fingerprints on nano-patterned deterministic aperiodic surfaces

Periodic gratings and photonic bandgap structures have been studied for decades in optical technologies. The translational invariance of periodic gratings gives rise to well-known angular and frequency filtering of the incident radiation resulting in well-defined scattered colors in response to broadband illumination, Here, we demonstrate the formation of highly complex structural color patterns, or colorimetric fingerprints, in twodimensional (2D) deterministic aperiodic gratings using dark field scattering microscopy. The origin of colorimetric fingerprints is explained by rigorous full-wave numerical simulations based on the generalized Mie theory. We show that unlike periodic gratings, aperiodic nanopatterned surfaces feature a broadband frequency response with wide angular intensity distributions governed by the distinctive Fourier properties of the aperiodic structures. Finally, we will discuss a range of potential applications of colorimetric fingerprints for optical sensing and spectroscopy. © 2010 Optical Society of America.

Duke Scholars

Author Jason Amsden Electrical and Computer Engineering