A processing technology has been developed to produce inverted two-dimensional photonic crystal structures by embedding an array of silicon pillars inside a polyimide matrix and releasing this structure from the underlying substrate. The spatial distribution of the high dielectric and low dielectric regions of these structures is inverted compared to the spatial distribution of standard photonic crystal structures produced by etching air holes in a high dielectric slab. Consequently these structures are far more difficult to fabricate. The integration requirements required for developing this technology are discussed along with the processing technology developed to fabricate these devices. An inverted photonic crystal device based on the superprism effect was successfully demonstrated. (c) 2006 American Vacuum Society.