9803005 Ren This grant supports research at a predominantly undergraduate institution to study aspects of phonon excitations in quantum dots. The work focuses on consequences of the reduced dimensionality of the dot, including interface and edge modes and mode mixing resulting from confinement. The PI will use a microscopic model to calculate realistic phonon modes in quantum dots and to investigate the effect of electron-phonon coupling on carrier relaxation and optical properties. %%% Ren will carry out theoretical research at a predominantly undergraduate institution that seeks to describe the atomic vibrations of atomic-scale structures consisting of a relatively small number of atoms known as `quantum dots.' Quantum dots are potentially useful in developing atomic- scale electronic and optical devices. ***
