Leonard Huxley Lecture Theatre

Dr Patrick Parkinson
Department of Electronic Materials Engineering

Nanoscale electronic devices promise to revolutionise the micro-electronics field. In particular, a bottom-up approach to nanoscale device growth promises to allow routine development of semiconductor material with dimensions approaching the 10nm scale. However, for these materials, the challenges associated with characterising and testing devices are multiplied many-fold. In particular, difficulties arise associated with the simplest electrical measurements; in essence, we need a contactless, ultrafast multimeter for our nanoelectronics components!

Typically, non-contact experiments have relied upon optical or electron spectroscopy. While these techniques reveal a wealth of information, they do not provide direct information about the electron dynamics that determine electrical performance of all devices. One recent technique which can provide this information (and more) is terahertz spectroscopy, used as a probe of electronic behaviour with sub-picosecond resolution. In this presentation, I will speak about terahertz spectroscopy, and its applications within the nanoelectronics community.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Dr Patrick Parkinson did his PhD at the University of Oxford, investigating the electronic properties of organic semiconductors for optoelectronic applications. As a postdoctoral researcher, he worked specifically on advanced terahertz spectroscopy of nanostructures. Since 2010, he has been a postdoctoral fellow with Professor Chennupati Jagadish, applying ultrafast optical measurements to semiconductor nanowires and other novel electronic materials.