Surface crystals on TPD glasses mediated by fast surface mobility
Different resonant modes in a circularly arranged gold nanosphere structure resulting from plasmon coupling
Fractal dewetting of thin TPD film on Si substrate
Various angle Ellipsometry measured 180 nm amorphous thin film; angular-dependent polarized photoluminescence setup in Dr. Kikkawa’s group at physics department
Fakhraai Group
Our group is interested in studying the effect of nano-confinement on structure, dynamics, and other physical properties of materials. Materials behave differently on surfaces, interfaces or small length scales compared to their bulk properties. Understanding such differences are crucial in many technological applications where materials are constrained in nanometer size spaces, such as organic electronics, polymer applications and drug delivery. One can take advantage of such difference to produce novel materials, such as exceptionally stable glasses or harvest light for various applications. In biological systems, most of the dynamics happens in nanometer size proximity of surfaces and interfaces, and understanding the properties in confinement is a key in predicting function. We focus our efforts on understanding the origins of such modified properties on a fundamental level as well as possible application of such phenomena in producing novel materials or experimental tools.
Available positions:
Graduate and Undergraduate Students: Our research is multi-disciplinary. We are looking for talented and motivated students from a broad range of expertises and backgrounds. Physical and organic chemists, physicists, and material scientists and engineers are welcome to join.
Postdoctoral Position in Exploring Physical Properties of Ultra-Stable Glasses: The Fakhraai group is currently seeking applicants for a postdoctoral position to study physical properties of ultra-stable glasses produced via physical vapor deposition. Applicants should have a background knowledge in working with ultra-high vacuum systems. Applicants with knowledge in in-situ characterization methods such as dielectric spectroscopy, nanocalorimetry, or spectroscopic ellipsometry will be given priority. Background knowledge in the field of chemistry and physics of glasses or polymer physics will be beneficial. Applicants who qualify for Postdoctoral Fellowships for Academic Diversity will be given priority. Interested applicants can apply by sending a CV, a brief statement of research and the name of two references to fakhraai@sas.upenn.edu
Postdoctoral Position in Exploring Optical Properties of Nanocomposites and Amorphous Meta-Materials: The Fakhraai group is currently seeking applicants for a postdoctoral position for experiments and modeling of nanocomposite materials containing metallic nanoparticles and quantum dots. Background in electromagnetism and optics is required for this position. Knowledge of working with TIRF microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry or FDTD simulation package are important for this position. Applicants who qualify for Postdoctoral Fellowships for Academic Diversity will be given priority. Interested applicants can apply by sending a CV, a brief statement of research and the name of two references to fakhraai@sas.upenn.edu
