Brilliant Structurally Colored Films with Invariable Stop-Band and Enhanced Mechanical Robustness Inspired by the Cobbled Road

Recently, structural colors have attracted great concentrations because the coloration is free from chemical- or photobleaching. However, the color saturation and mechanical robustness are generally competitive properties in the fabrication of PCs (photonic crystals) films. Besides, the structure of PCs and their derivatives are easy to be invaded by liquids and lead to band gap shifts due to the change of refractive index or periodicity. To solve those problems, we infiltrate polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) into the intervals between regularly arrayed hollow SiO2 nanospheres, inspired by the cobbled road prepared by embedding stone in the bulk cement matrix. Consequently, the as-prepared PCs films show brilliant colors, invariable stop-bands, and excellent mechanical robustness. Moreover, the water contact angle even reached 166° after a sandpaper abrasion test. The combination of brilliant colors, invariable stop-bands, and excellent robustness is significant for potential application in paint and external decoration of architectures.