Design and Preparation of a 3D Photonic Glass with a Broad Infrared Gap

Abstract Photonic glasses with infrared gaps can be used as surface coating materials to effectively change the infrared radiation characteristics of substrate. In this research, a photonic glass with an infrared broad gap could be prepared easily in thermostatic water bath by a simple and fast baking protocol. The photonic glass prepared had a broad gap from 4.25 to 4.57 μm, centering at 4.45 μm, which was slightly different from the result of numerical simulation due to the existence of the internal disordered structure. The infrared transmission diagram showed that the infrared transmittance of a substrate covered by the photonic glass can be reduced from 80 % to 25 % at infrared atmosphere window of 3∼5 μm, which proved the ability of the material to regulate and control the infrared electromagnetic wave. In addition, the material can significantly restrain the infrared radiation of the substrate at 60 °C, which was expected to achieve stealth under the infrared detection.