Properties of photonic crystals that enable their use in polygraphy

Photonic crystals are an innovative material and have recently been used in printing. They consist of dielectric layers of a variable refractive index. The change of this value may occur in one, two or three directions. Thanks to it, photonic crystals give the possibility of conscious control of the electromagnetic wave in the structure, which leads to the creation of photonic band gap, and this allows the conscious creation of color. It turns out therefore that the color is created not only as a result of the mixture of additive or subtractive basic colors, but also due to photonic changes as in the case of photonic crystals. Photonic crystals are used in printing as a method of securing documents. The deliberately designed width of the photonic band gap creates any color that can change under the influence of certain factors, such as the application of a magnetic field or a change in the angle of observation. Pigments containing photonic crystals make the item difficult to forge. So far, research has been conducted on the use of cognition of new properties of these crystals and on the use of those already known. Conducting experiments is expensive, however, the premonition of scientists allow to conclude that photonic crystals are a valuable material on which to focus more attention