Self Assembled Quantum Dots

This multidisciplinary book provides up-to-date coverage of carrier and spin dynamics and energy transfer and structural interaction among nanostructures. Coverage also includes current device applications such as quantum dot lasers and detectors, as well as future applications to quantum information processing. The book will serve as a reference for anyone working with or planning to work with quantum dots.

This is an overview of different models and mechanisms developed to describe the capture and relaxation of carriers in quantum-dot systems. Despite their undisputed importance, the mechanisms leading to population and energy exchanges between a quantum dot and its environment are not yet fully understood. The authors develop a first-order approach to such effects, using elementary quantum mechanics and an introduction to the physics of semiconductors. The book results from a series of lectures given by the authors at the Master’s level.

Special focus is given to the optical and electronic properties of single quantum dots due to their potential applications in devices operating with single electrons and/or single photons. This includes quantum dots in electric and magnetic fields, cavity-quantum electrodynamics, nonclassical light generation, and coherent optical control of excitons.

This is an overview of different models and mechanisms developed to describe the capture and relaxation of carriers in quantum-dot systems. Despite their undisputed importance, the mechanisms leading to population and energy exchanges between a quantum dot and its environment are not yet fully understood. The authors develop a first-order approach to such effects, using elementary quantum mechanics and an introduction to the physics of semiconductors. The book results from a series of lectures given by the authors at the Master’s level.

This volume is concerned with the crystal growth, optical properties, and optical device application of the self-formed quantum dot, which is one of the major current subjects in the semiconductor research field. The atom-like density of states in quantum dots is expected to drastically improve semiconductor laser performance, and to develop new optical devices. However, since the first theoretical prediction for its great possibilities was presented in 1982, due to the difficulty of their fabrication process. Recently, the advent of self-organized quantum dots has made it possible to apply the results in important optical devices, and further progress is expected in the near future. The authors, working for Fujitsu Laboratories, are leading this quantum-dot research field. In this volume, they describe the state of the art in the entire field, with particular emphasis on practical applications.

The self-assembled nanostructured materials described in this book offer a number of advantages over conventional material technologies in a wide range of sectors. World leaders in the field of self-organisation of nanostructures review the current status of research and development in the field, and give an account of the formation, properties, and self-organisation of semiconductor nanostructures. Chapters on structural, electronic and optical properties, and devices based on self-organised nanostructures are also included. Future research work on self-assembled nanostructures will connect diverse areas of material science, physics, chemistry, electronics and optoelectronics. This book will provide an excellent starting point for workers entering the field and a useful reference to the nanostructured materials research community. It will be useful to any scientist who is involved in nanotechnology and those wishing to gain a view of what is possible with modern fabrication technology. Mohamed Henini is a Professor of Applied Physics at the University of Nottingham. He has authored and co-authored over 750 papers in international journals and conference proceedings and is the founder of two international conferences. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Microelectronics Journal and has edited three previous Elsevier books. Contributors are world leaders in the field Brings together all the factors which are essential in self-organisation of quantum nanostructures Reviews the current status of research and development in self-organised nanostructured materials Provides a ready source of information on a wide range of topics Useful to any scientist who is involved in nanotechnology Excellent starting point for workers entering the field Serves as an excellent reference manual

Since the early 1990s, quantum dots have become an integral part of research in solid state physics for their fundamental properties that mimic the behavior of atoms and molecules on a larger scale. They also have a broad range of applications in engineering and medicines for their ability to tune their electronic properties to achieve specific functions. This book is a compilation of articles that span 20 years of research on comprehensive physical models developed by their authors to understand the detailed properties of these quantum objects and to tailor them for specific applications. Far from being exhaustive, this book focuses on topics of interest for solid state physicists, materials scientists, engineers, and general readers, such as quantum dots and nanocrystals for single-electron charging with applications in memory devices, quantum dots for electron-spin manipulation with applications in quantum information processing, and finally self-assembled quantum dots for applications in nanophotonics.