Welcome to the Theoretical Solid State Optics Group
The main research focus in our group is on theoretical investigations of the optical properties of semiconductor structures. Our fundamental theoretical investigations of semiconductors are based on microscopic quantum-mechanical many-body theories and include ultrafast nonlinear optical processes in bulk semiconductors, quantum-well structures and two-dimensional semiconductors.
Examples of research projects include macroscopic quantum phenomena and non-conventional lasing states in semiconductor microcavities, such as the polaritonic Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer state, excitons in conventional GaAs quantum wells and in transition-metal dichalcogenides, non-Hermitian effects, plasmonic heterostructure, high-intensity InGaN lasers, slow and fast light, polaritonic four-wave mixing instabilities, pattern formation in polaritonic quantum fluids, electromagnetically-induced transparency, nonlinear spectroscopy and all-optical switching applications of Bragg-spaced multiple quantum wells, optical refrigeration of semiconductors, optical and elastic properties of semiconductor nanomembranes, optical properties of graphene, and also a topic not related to semiconductors, namely laser cooling of optical glass fibers.
Prof. Binder received his PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Dortmund in 1989. He is currently professor of Optical Sciences and Professor of Physics, University of Arizona. He has more than 150 peer-reviewed journal articles, about 400 conference proceedings, and is a Fellow of OPTICA (formerly Optical Society of America) and an Outstanding Referee of the American Physical Society. He is actively involved in the research community, for example by serving as the co-chair of the XI International Symposium Ultrafast Dynamics and Ultrafast Bandgap Photonics, and on the advisory committee of the Fundamental Optical Processes in Semiconductors conference.
For extracurricular activities, see Dr. Binder’s YouTube channel at this link.
If interested in Dr. Binder’s research, please see his book Optical Properties of Graphene (World Scientific, 2017), which was also announced on EurekAlert.
This book provides a comprehensive state-of-the-art overview of the optical properties of graphene. During the past decade, graphene, a two-dimensional material that is only one atomic layer thick, has become one of the most widely studied materials, and has paved the way for the exploration of other two-dimensional materials such as transition-metal dichalcogenides. The unique properties of graphene hold great promise to revolutionize many electronic, photonic and opto-electronic devices. This book contains an introductory tutorial and 13 chapters written by experts in areas ranging from fundamental quantum mechanical properties to opto-electronic device applications of graphene.