NIRT: Advanced Characterization Techniques In Optics for Nanostructures (ACTION)

Trustees Of Boston University, Boston

Investigators

Abstract

This proposal was received in response to Nanoscale Science and Engineering initiative, NSF 01-157, category NIRT. Recent advances have made it possible to assemble materials and components atom by atom, or molecule by molecule allowing for controlled fabrication of nanostructures with dimensions of from 3 to 100 nm. Compared to the behavior of isolated molecules or bulk materials, the behavior of nanostructures exhibit important physical properties not necessarily predictable from observations of either individual constituents or large ensembles. Predominant at the nanoscale are size confinement and quantum mechanical behavior observed in optical and electronic properties, as well as distinct elastic and/or mechanical features. The possibility of utilizing nanoscale behavior to enhance material properties and device functions beyond those that we currently consider feasible is widely anticipated. These new materials and devices herald a revolutionary age for science and technology, provided we can observe the detailed operation and discover and utilize the underlying principles. The developments in nanotechnology present an outstanding challenge to characterization (measurement) technology by requiring nm-scale 3-D measurement capabilities. While the technology for synthesis has rapidly advanced, optical characterization of nanostructures is still in its infancy. We will build on existing expertise and infrastructure at Boston University and University of Rochester and develop a toolbox of novel nano-optical characterization techniques to discover and understand the novel properties of nanostructures. The Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Team (NIRT) program in Advanced Characterization Techniques in Optics for Nanostructures (ACTION) will develop measurement methods to study and understand nanostructures. Solid immersion microscopy techniques combined with metal-tips will provide unprecedented resolution for spectroscopy of quantum dots and other semiconductor systems. The ultimate goal of the proposed program is to develop robust and efficient optical techniques at a spatial resolution on the order of 10 nm. Beyond building the required tools to investigate novel properties of nanostructures, we will apply these tools to help answer fundamental questions facing nanoscale researchers today. In the area of quantum information processing, we will investigate the experimentally inaccessible regime of closely coupled quantum dots, the coherence of excited states, and quantum dots in tunable microcavities; in the area nanomechanical systems, we will explore the detailed mechanisms of energy dissipation and phase noise in resonant nanostructures; in the area of nanophotonics, we will directly determine the local modal volumes of defect states in photonics bandgap structures and investigate the nanoscale origins of mode leakage; and in the area of ultrasonics, we will measure the elastic properties of solids at the nanoscale, exploring the high frequency regime of nanoscale stresses for the first time.