  We present a systematic study of the frequency band structure of acoustic
waves in crystals consisting of nonoverlapping solid spheres in a fluid. We
consider colloidal crystals consisting of polystyrene spheres in water, and an
opal consisting of close-packed silica spheres in air. The opal exhibits an
omnidirectional frequency gap of considerable width; the colloidal crystals do
not. The physical origin of the bands are discussed for each case in some
detail. We present also results on the transmittance of finite slabs of the
above crystals.
