RESEARCH

Our research effort aims to explore structural, optical, and electronic properties of two-dimensional materials and devices. Raman spectroscopy is a nondestructive, versatile tool to study optical phonons and their interactions with electrons. Photoluminescence provides a view of the unique energy landscape created by the presence of the quantum-confined two-dimensional materials, a picture which must be consistent with the understanding of the electron-phonon interaction implied by the Raman scattering. Therefore, a parallel Raman and photoluminescence investigation can provide new insights into low-dimensional physics; in principle this new understanding can be utilized in a number of future technological applications, including optoelectronic applications. 

Various experimental techniques are employed in our research lab, including controllable spatial resolution from microscale to nanoscale, variable temperature from 3 K to 500 K, and in situ Raman and photoluminescence from an operating two-dimensional device. These individual experimental methods are integrated with a home-built optical imaging facility.