David W. Snoke Professor, Physics and Astronomy

Bose-Einstein condensation and nonlinear optics of exciton and polariton systems

Keywords: condensed matter experiment, solid state optics, semiconductor optics

The main focus of our research group is optics of solid state systems, primarily semiconductors such as GaAs. The coupling of light to electronic excitations, known as excitons, leads to a number of fascinating effects such as spontaneous coherence (lasing without inversion), super-high nonlinear terms, and time-delayed transport of optical energy over long distances, which can be thought of as photons with an effective mass.  The electronics and optics occur in effectively two- dimensional systems which are made by carefully controlling the thickness of epitaxial layers of semiconductors on the sub-nanometer scale. We have recently begun combining optical studies with measurements of electrical transport. To do this involves fabricating contacts which allow us to make electrical connections to separate layers of the semiconductor structures.

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