FOR 1282:  Controlling the Electronic Structure of Semiconductor Nanoparticles by Doping and Hybrid Formation

• Subject Area: Physics
• Term: from 2010 to 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 120401550

This joint Research Unit intends a comprehensive investigation of the electronic structure of modified or functionalised semiconductor nanoparticles, with the particular goal of controlling their electronic and optical properties by doping and hybrid formation. These studies aim for a detailed understanding of cluster modification with the ultimate goal of identifying building blocks for novel materials with unique optical and electronic properties.
The experimental programme covers gas-phase studies on size-selected particles as well as deposited cluster nanostructures, with the focus on the important class of group IV elements carbon and silicon. Cage-like structures such as endohedrally-doped fullerenes, nanodiamonds, graphene structures, and transition metal doped and modified silicon clusters will be characterised by IR, optical, UV and X-ray spectroscopy as well as microscopy. Theoretical tools, such as time-dependant density functional theory and efficient sampling techniques will further be used to establish an understanding of stable adsorbate/dopant combinations and the description of coupled electron nuclear dynamics.

• DFG Programme: Research Units

Projects

• Atomic and Electronic Structure of Clusters on Silicon Surfaces (Applicant Dähne, Mario )
• Central project (Applicant Möller, Thomas )
• Electronic Structure and Excited State Dynamics of Pristine and Functionalized Nanodiamonds, Diamondoid Aggregates and Hybrids (Applicant Möller, Thomas )
• Electronic Structure of Doped Silicon Clusters and Metal Cluster-Hydrocarbon Hybrids (Applicant Fielicke, André )
• Electronic Structure of Silicon-Containing Clusters and Nanodiamondoids (Applicant Dopfer, Otto )
• Excited State Properties and Spectroscopy of Semiconductor Nanoparticles (Applicant Saalfrank, Peter )
• First-Principles Statistical Mechanics Studies of Doped Silicon Clusters: From Isolated Cages to Clusters in Complex Environments (Applicant Reuter, Karsten )
• Optical Properties and Ultrafast Dynamics in Metal Cluster Hybrids with Diamondoids, and Conjugated pi-Systems (Applicant Mitric, Roland )
• Spectroscopy of Endohedrally Doped non-IPR Fullerenes M@C60 on a Substrate (Applicant Eberhardt, Wolfgang )
• Stabilizing HIgh-Spin States of Transition Metal Doped Silicon Clusters (Applicant Lau, Tobias )
• Synthetically tailoring diamondoids for semiconductor applications (Applicant Schreiner, Peter R. )
• Vibrational and Electronic Properties of Functionalized Diamondoids (Applicant Maultzsch, Janina )

• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Thomas Möller