  We fabricated two dimensional photonic crystal structures in zinc oxide films
with focused ion beam etching. Lasing is realized in the near ultraviolet
frequency at room temperature under optical pumping. From the measurement of
lasing frequency and spatial profile of the lasing modes, as well as the
photonic band structure calculation, we conclude that lasing occurs in the
strongly localized defect modes near the edges of photonic band gap. These
defect modes originate from the structure disorder unintentionally introduced
during the fabrication process.
