Overview

The Independent Junior Research Group ("Selbständige Nachwuchsgruppe") Theory of semiconductor nanostructures was established in October 2007.

Our research focuses on the theory of semiconductor nanostructures. Our special interest resides in quantum mechanical effects that become apparent when the carriers of charge and magnetic moment, i.e., electrons or holes, are confined into space regions with dimensions in the nanometer range. Our aim is to develop theoretical concepts and implement them into computational methods where the atomistic nature of the problem is retained. At one end of the size scale, when the confining region encompasses only dozens of atoms, we are in direct contact with the chemical world of molecules. At the other side of the length scale we enter the fast growing and expanding world of artificially structured solids, such as quantum wells, quantum wires and quantum dots. We work in close collaboration with experimentalists to benchmark our theory and to provide understanding and insight into the quantum states probed experimentally.