Thermal radiation characteristics of silicon inverse opal in mid infrared range

A binary solvent with large density was used as dispersant for silica spheres, in which silica spheres with large diameter can suspend steadily and disperse very well. With this suspension, fine opals with 2100 nm SiO₂ mono-disperse spheres were successfully prepared by solvent evaporation method. Low pressure vapor deposition method was then used to fill the voids of the silica opals with Si, and silicon inverse opal with photonic band gaps in mid infrared region was obtained. The infrared radiation characteristic of resulted sample was examined. It is shown that silicon inverse opal structure is effective in suppressing silicon thermal radiation in the photonic band gap spectral region.