Research

The Nanotechnology Group pursues a research and education program in nanoscale science and engineering, which projects into the future and anticipates technologies needed ten years from now. We seek to identify, translate, and integrate into new technologies basic principles and properties acting on or emerging from nanoscale dimensions.

We have a long track record in developing and applying advanced scanning probe microscopy techniques for surface and materials characterization, in particular the mapping of local surface potential distributions on passive and active structures. Additionally, we focus on combinations of bottom-up assembly and top-down structuring techniques to arrange and interconnect individual nanoscale objects at desired locations on a substrate, with the aim to create functional structures that are interfaced to the macroscopic world.

Designable functionality and precise composition of molecules, coupled with their small size, make them potential candidates to overcome the increasing difficulties current CMOS technology faces upon further downscaling. Such molecules typically consist of a highly conjugated backbone and end-groups that readily bind to noble metal contacts.

Complex biological molecules such as enzymes are rarely used in the context of molecular electronics. Yet, they are particularly suitable for power generation from complex biomass environments. Complementing our successful demonstration of a biofuel cell operating from human macrophages we have designed switchable and reconfigurable biofuel cells that rely on enzymes coupled to magnetic nanoparticles. With these studies we have demonstrated facile routes to induce electric communication between separate enzyme systems and the macroscopic world.

Our current research in the field of nanoscale electronic structures and materials targets the self-assembly of 2D van der Waals heterostructures and the optoelectronic behavior of structured nanoparticle arrays. Alongside we develop the required specialized local characterization tools such as photoinduced force microscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy induced light emission.