In this NSF Young Investigator Award in the Physical Chemistry Program of the Chemistry Division, James R. Heath will focus on understanding and controlling the chemistry and physics of size and shape on a nanometer-length scale, with emphasis on Group IV and III-V quantum crystals. The physics of size and shape is probed through a variety of single-particle and time- and frequency-resolved spectroscopies. Silicon and germanium quantum dots, atomically straight Ge quantum wires, and atomically flat Ge quantum wells have all been synthesized and are candidates for study. Ordered, complex structures over three dimensions will be prepared by coupling wires, dots, and platelets together. Self-assembly techniques are also investigated. Biological systems are also being examined as templates on which to fabricate tiny superconducting metal wires. %%% The synthetic methods developed and investigated under this award offer the promise for substantially better size resolution than state-of-the-art lithographic techniques. The challenge in this program is to learn how to assemble nanometer-size structures over two dimensions with regularity. Such nano-scale structures are important in the fabrication of miniaturized electronic devices which could help form the microchips for future applications.
