Plasmonic metal nanostructures for enhanced light-matter interaction ate the nanoscale.

The aim of this research project is a fundamental investigation of plasmonic nano-systems to enhance light absorption and scattering at the nanoscale. Plasmonic nano-systems involve the interaction between light and (noble) metals, which induces a collective oscillation of free electrons on the metal surface excited by the electromagnetic field of incident light at suitable wavelengths surface plasmons. The first objective of this project is to design and develop metallic plasmonic nanostructures for enhanced light absorption in solar cells to improve the performance and/or reduce the cost of the solar cells. Four different enhancement strategies will be examined on organic and dye-sensitized thin film solar cells. The second objective of this project involves the design and development of plasmonic nanostructures for enhanced light scattering (e.g., Raman scattering) of molecules for biosensing, in particular, for DNA sensing. In parallel, we also want to study the mechanisms of the absorption and scattering enhancement in different systems and to understand the relevant physics and/or chemistry underlying.

Keywords:Plasmonics, Nanostructure, Nanoparticle, Surface plasmon resonance, Surface enhanced Raman scattering, Solar cells

Disciplines:Applied mathematics in specific fields, Materials science and engineering, Electrical power engineering, Energy generation, conversion and storage engineering, Physical chemistry