CAREER: Near-infrared Intersubband Transitions in Low-dimensional Semiconductor Structures: Material, Devices and Physics

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True excellence in a career as university professor requires commitment, creativity and excellence in both research and education. In this proposal, a plan for implementing a research and education program in Electrical Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz is presented.In the research part of the proposal, the investigation of intersubband transitions in low-dimensional semiconductor quantum structures in the near-infrared wavelength range is put forward as an area of research activity with long-term potential for advancing materials science, engineering and physics. As optical networks become a reality and solutions for higher data bit rates are sought, intersubband transitions are an attractive alternative to currently existing technologies for pushing the limits of optical communications to higher bandwidths. Increasing the bandwidth is essential for building faster and less costly communication products and systems. The material properties of antimony-based heterostructures for near-infrared intersubband transitions will be studied. This includes determining band offsets and optical nonlinearities as well as the growth of self-assembled quantum dots. Secondly, new devices such as ultrafast wavelength converters and photodetectors will be designed and realized. Finally, new physics can be explored. Examples are nonclassical light emission from quantum dots at room temperature and quantum interference effects such as electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in intersubband transitions.The educational aspects of this proposal are tailored to improve the educational programs in Electrical Engineering at the Universitt of California, Santa Cruz, on several levels: within the University -lf, the local community, as well as the global scientific community at large. To this end, a number of measures are proposed for each community. Within UC Santa Cruz, the emphasis lies on building up the educational program of a very new department by developing new classes for the curriculum and introducing new ideas for classroom instruction. Activities involving the local community have a special emphasis on interaction with students who are at critical points in their school careers. Examples are open houses for high school seniors and lectures and demonstrations at middle schools to expose students at a younger age to science. Finally, the paramount importance of global interaction between students and scholars is recognized by proposing a number of programs, which institutionalize and foster relations, that will be beneficial to all participants. This includes establishing partner schools for exchange programs and joint educational projects, for example with the German Academic Exchange Service(DAAD).