Colloidal crystal generating, controlling, and detecting photons (packets of light), particularly in the visible and near Infrared, but also extending to the Ultraviolet, Infrared and far IR portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. The science of photonics includes the emission, transmission, amplification, detection, modulation, and switching of lightwaves over a broad range of frequencies and wavelengths. Photonic devices include electro-optic components such as lasers (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) and optical fiber. Applications include telecommunications, information processing, illumination, spectroscopy, holography, medicine (surgery, vision correction, endoscopy), military (guided missile) technology, agriculture and robotics. Polycrystalline colloidal structures have been identified as the basic
Stimulated emission quantum theory, wherein the emission is described in terms of photons that are the quanta of the EM field. Stimulated emission can also occur in classical models, without reference to photons or quantum-mechanics. (See also Laser#history ) Stimulated emission can be modelled mathematically by considering an atom that may be in one of two electronic energy states, a lower level state (possibly the ground state) (1) and an "excited state" (2), with energies "E" and "E" respectively. If the atom is in the excited state, it may decay into the lower state by the process of spontaneous emission, releasing the