Advancements in the Synthesis and Application Research of Structural Color Photonic Crystal Inks

Abstract

Photonic crystals enable further manipulation of light at the nanometer scale, and the preparation of photonic crystal inks becomes a novel approach in achieving multifunctional and customizable light manipulation. The unique physical structure of photonic crystals exhibits special structural colors, which find wide applications in fields such as displays, sensors, information storage and anti‐counterfeiting measures, printing, and biomedicine. Compared to traditional dye‐based inks containing chemical pigments, photonic crystal inks not only maintain vibrant colors for longer durations but also significantly reduce environmental harm. This article introduces the basic characteristics of photonic crystal inks, summarizes recent synthetic methods of some inks, and finally concludes with an overview and prospects of the applications and development directions of photonic crystal inks.