Surfaces with photonic crystal coatings and methods of customizing the visual appearance thereof

1. A surface structure comprising:

a substrate;

a photonic crystal coating disposed on the substrate, the photonic crystal coating comprising capsules dispersed in a matrix material, each capsule comprising particles disposed in a medium; and

wherein the particles are configured to align in an ordered array upon application of an electromagnetic field.

2. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the substrate is a glass.

3. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the substrate is a metal.

4. The surface structure of claim 1 , where the substrate is a polymer.

5. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the capsules have a first refractive index and the particles have a second refractive index, wherein the first refractive index is lower than the second refractive index.

6. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the capsule is a glass.

7. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the matrix material of the capsule comprises a polymer.

8. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the particles are a magnetic material.

9. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the particles are a ferro-electric material.

10. The surface structure of claim 1 , wherein the particles are charged, magnetic, dielectric, or a combination thereof.

11. A method of creating a visual appearance on a surface of a substrate comprising:

applying a photonic crystal coating to at least a portion of a surface of the substrate, the photonic crystal coating comprising capsules dispersed in a matrix material, each capsule comprising particles embedded in a curable carrier medium, the embedded particles configured to align in an ordered array upon application of an electromagnetic field;

exposing at least a portion of the photonic crystal coating to the electromagnetic field to cause the particles to align in the ordered array such that the portion of the photonic crystal coating appears as a selected color; and

curing the curable carrier medium in the capsules at the exposed portion of the photonic crystal coating to retain the selected color on the substrate after the electromagnetic field is removed.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the electromagnetic field is a magnetic field.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the electromagnetic field is an electric field.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the curing comprising selectively applying a laser to the portion of the photonic crystal.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the portion is a first portion, and further comprising

exposing a second portion of the photonic crystal coating to a second electromagnetic field associated with a second color, and

curing the carrier medium in the capsules at the exposed second portion to retain the second color after the second electromagnetic field is removed.

16. The method of claim 11 , wherein the portion is a first portion, and further comprising:

exposing a second portion of the photonic crystal coating to a second electromagnetic field associated with a second color prior to the curing step, wherein the curing step cures the carrier media in capsules in the second portion of the of the photonic crystal coating to retain the second color after the electromagnetic field is removed.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the visual appearance is selected from a pattern, a design, a drawing, and a photograph.

18. The method of claim 11 , where the surface of the substrate is selected from a housing, a casing, a frame, and a display.

19. A method of dynamically changing a visual appearance of a portion of a substrate comprising:

applying a photonic crystal coating to at least a portion of a surface of the substrate having a first color, the photonic crystal coating comprising capsules dispersed in a matrix material, each capsule comprising particles disposed in a medium, the particles configured to align in an ordered array upon application of an electromagnetic field;

exposing a portion of the photonic crystal coating to the electromagnetic field to cause the particles to align in the ordered array such that the photonic crystal coating appears as a second color; and

removing the electromagnetic field to cause the particles to move out of the ordered array such that the photonic crystal coating appears as the first color.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the electromagnetic field is a magnetic field.