Responsive photonic nanopixels with hybrid scatterers

Metallic and dielectric nanoscatterers are optical pigments that offer rich resonating coloration in the subwavelength regime with prolonged material consistency. Recent advances in responsive materials, whose mechanical shapes and optical properties can change in response to stimuli, expand the scope of scattering-based colorations from static to active. Thus, active color-changing pixels are achieved with extremely high spatial resolution, in conjunction with various responsive polymers and phase-change materials. This review discusses recent progress in developing such responsive photonic nanopixels, ranging from electrochromic to other color-changing concepts. We describe what parameters permit modulation of the scattering colors and highlight superior functional devices. Potential fields of application focusing on imaging devices, including active full-color printing and flexible displays, information encryption, anticounterfeiting, and active holograms, are also discussed.