Bioinspired Quasi-3D Multiplexed Anti-Counterfeit Imaging via Self-Assembled and Nanoimprinted Photonic Architectures

Innovative multiplexing technologies based on nano-optics for anti-counterfeiting have been proposed as overt and covert technologies to secure products and make them difficult to counterfeit. However, most of these nano-optical anti-counterfeiting materials are metasurfaces and metamaterials with complex and expensive fabrication process, often resulting in materials that are not damage tolerant. Highly efficient anti-counterfeiting technologies with easy fabrication process are targeted for intuitive and effective authentication of banknotes, secure documents, and goods packing. Here, a simple strategy exploiting self-assembling and nanoimprinting technique to fabricate a composite lattice photonic crystal architecture featuring full spatial control of light, multiplexed full-pixel imaging, and multichannel cryptography combined with customized algorithms is reported. In particular, the real-time encryption/recognition of mobile quick response codes and anti-counterfeiting labels on a postage stamp, encoded by the proposed photonic architecture, are both demonstrated. The wave optics of scattering, diffraction, and polarization process involved are also described, validated with numerical simulations and experiments. By introducing a new degree of freedom in the 3D space, the multichannel image switching exhibits unprecedented variability of encryption, providing a promising roadmap to achieve larger information capacity, better security, and higher definition for the benefit of modern anti-counterfeiting security.