Immobilized Bi2WO6 thin films were successfully synthesized by direct chemical deposition on SiO2 photonic crystals. The as-prepared Bi2WO6/SiO2 photonic crystal films exhibited excellent photocatalytic decomposition of RhB and phenol under visible light irradiation. Almost 99% of the RhB molecules were degraded within 60 min and 64% of the phenol molecules were degraded within 2 h along with the sharp decrease of total organic carbon (TOC) under visible light irradiation. Comparative studies indicated that the photocatalytic activity of the Bi2WO6/SiO2 films is about 3 times higher than that of ordinary Bi2WO6 films under the same conditions. The transmission spectrum of the Bi2WO6/SiO2 photonic crystal films exhibited an apparent transmission dip around 550 nm originated from its photonic crystal structure. The different photocatalytic performance between the ordinary Bi2WO6 film and the Bi2WO6/SiO2 photonic crystal film may be ascribed to their different film structures. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.