PDE-MP-HA seminar, 25th April 2008, 1:50pm, Bloc627

Speaker: Alexey Belyanin, Physics, Texas A&M
Title: Electron states, transport, and coherent optical phenomena in 
  semiconductor nanostructures

Abstract:
Semiconductor nanostructures offer a unique quantum-mechanical playground, in 
which electron energy spectra, symmetry of the wave functions, transition matrix 
elements, and many other parameters can be controlled with high precision and 
designed to exhibit desired optical and transport properties. Giant nonlinearity 
associated with excitation of collective polariton modes enables observation of 
fragile quantum coherence effects that have been previously observed only in 
rarefied atomic ensembles. I will describe our modeling and "quantum design" of 
such systems, as well as their successful implementation in collaboration with 
several experimental groups. I will also briefly discuss emerging applications in 
infrared sensing, non-invasive medical diagnostics, and quantum communications.