Crystalline colloidal arrays from the self-assembly of polymer microspheres

Various polymer microspheres have demonstrated their ability to form crystalline colloidal arrays in relatively concentrated suspensions. The behaviors of such structures are closely related to the characteristics and properties of the microspheres, which could be easily tuned with the choice of monomers and the polymerization procedure. Three commonly used kinds of microspheres are reviewed here: charged hard microspheres, microgels and core-shell particles with a hydrogel shell. The light diffraction displayed by the resulting crystalline colloidal arrays has triggered an increasing interest for potential applications such as optical switches and biosensors.