Looked at under a microscope, the structures, called photonic crystals, resemble hollow spheres stacked like a honeycomb. Manipulate the Light Opals reflect bright colors because air and silica pack together in a way that affects the light travelling through the molecules. Similarly, the structures, made out of a chemical relative of polystyrene or Styrofoam, manipulate the light in predictable, precise ways as it passes through. We start with polymer molecules in solution. They self-organize into hollow spheres, and billions and billions of them come together in a precise, ordered way to form a larger periodic structure.
Computers now rely on semiconductors, crystals that can control millions of electronic signals.
A system that would allow this to happen with light would be much faster and more efficient. What we're able to do now with electrons led to the microelectronics revolution. For that you need materials like these photonic crystals that allow you to trap light and control the way it propagates. Copyright 1999 Reuters. All rights reserved.