Unlike bulk materials, nanocrystals are incredibly sensitive to their local optical and electronic environment. The color, polarization, and even direction of light can be tuned by the local environment and structure of the nanocrystal. Since cesium lead halide perovskite nanocrystals do not need a secondary shell to emit brightly, they are especially sensitive to their environment. Understanding this phenomenon gives immense insight into the underlying physics of these materials as well as how they interact with each other, allowing us to design new functionality and create complex materials. 

Associated Papers:

1. M. Dudala, L. Gaither, and C. N. Eisler, “Horizontally Aligned Dipole Emission through Solvent Controlled Fusing of Perovskite Nanocubes and Nanoplates into 1D Nanowires,” J. Phys. Chem. C, May 2026. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.6c00407  

2. L. E. Parsons, A. Y. Grishchenko, and C. N. Eisler, "Oriented Dipoles in Ordered Ensembles of Confined Lead Halide Perovskite Nanocrystals," J. Phys. Chem. C, 2026, 130, 5, 1996–2003. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.5c07457 

3. L. E. Parsons, B. Russ, and C. N. Eisler, “Tunable Angular Light Emission of Lead Halide Perovskite Nanocrystal Thin Films via Solution-Processed Substrate Treatment,” ACS Nanosci. Au, Jun. 2025, doi: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnanoscienceau.5c00054.

This work supported by the National Science Foundation CAREER Award under Grant No. 2240140

We live in a truly exciting time: our understanding of how light interacts with matter has advanced significantly and we possess the means to fabricate these nanomaterials that interact with visible light in extraordinary ways. Our group uses these foundations to design transformative photonic and optoelectronic devices, whether it's brighter, less energy intensive lighting, renewable energy concentrators that are more efficient and lighter than traditional lenses, or light demultiplexers for fast communication of complex information.

Associated Papers

1. D. J. Katz, G. C. Nerhood, E. Levine, N. Owen, and C. N. Eisler, “Quantifying thin-film nonidealities to assess the performance of low-cost, spin-coated reflectors,” J. Opt. Soc. Am. A, vol. 43, no. 6, p. 901, Jun. 2026. https://doi.org/10.1364/JOSAA.588096

Characterizing the optical properties nanomaterials using light is inherently challenging due to the diffraction limit, which precludes precisely observing anything below a few hundred of nanometers with visible light. We use custom-built microscopes to combine the étendue measurement, time-resolved photoluminescence, uv-vis, and spectroscopy data to build a holistic picture of the photoluminescence properties of nanomaterials across a wide range of realistic and idealized environments. This data allows us to prove the fundamental photophyscs of nanophotonic materials such as perovskite nanocrystals and engineer next-generation optoelectronic devices such as luminescent solar concentrators.

Associated Papers:

1. Russ, B., Lin, T.T., Elenteny, H., and Eisler, C. N. "Quantifying the Accuracy and Precision of the Transition Dipole Moment Alignment from Realistic Angular Emission Data." ACS Photonics, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsphotonics.5c00684