University of Southern California Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science The USC Andrew and Erna Viterbi School of Engineering USC
Sitemap  |  Contact Us

Anupam Madhukar


Kenneth T. Norris Professor of Engineering
Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Physics and Biomedical Engineering
Director, Nanostructure Materials & Devices Laboratory (NMDL)
USC Center for Neural Engineering

Anupam Madhukar



Research Overview

Electronic/Photonic Materials & Nanostructures
Growth, In-situ processing, Electrical, Optical and Structural Properties, and Devices


Objectives:To examine fundamental and applied issues relating to growth, in-situ processing, and characterization of III-V semiconductor based ultrathin multilayered structures (i.e., quantum wells, super- lattices, etc.) and nanostructures (quantum wires and boxes) of relevance to electronics and optoelectronics. Experimental, theoretical, and high performance large-scale computer simulation work is carried out in the following areas: 
  1. Synthesis of self-assembled semiconductor nanostructures (quantum wires and boxes) via engineered surface stress utilizing molecular beam epitaxial (MBE) growth of GaAs/AlxGa1-xAs, GaAs/InGa1-xAs and other (GaAlIn)/(As,Sb) combinations on planar and patterned substrates. Emphasis is on examining the kinetics and mechanism(s) of growth via the use of real time reflection high-energy electron diffraction intensity dynamics, coupled with large scale computer simulations of the MBE growth process and in-situ scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopies (STM/AFM).
  2. Device Processing - Custom designed plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition and focused ion beam assisted chemical etching chambers, UHV interfaced with MBE growth and STM/AFM chambers, are employed to examine opportunities and challenges in the area of in-situ, all dry processing. Efforts include real-time material property sensor feedback based control of dry etching.
  3. Optical Properties of the confined nanostructures are being examined via measurements of optical absorption and electroabsorption (from near IR to visible), photoreflectance, photoluminescence (PL), PL excitation spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry (from near IR to UV). Emphasis is on understanding the atomistic nature of the material interfaces critical to determining the electrical and optical properties of the quantum well structures.
  4. Electron Microscope studies are being carried out to examine the microstructural nature of the confined structures and their interfaces. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy is employed in both, the image contrast and lattice imaging modes. Such facilities are available at the Center for Electron Microscopy and Microanalysis (CEMMA) of USC.
  5. Electrical Properties of quasi 2-dimensionally confined electron or hole gas in quantum well structures are being studied through measurements of the Hall mobility, C-V, I-V, tunneling and magnetotransport (Shubnikov-de Haas) behavior. Emphasis is on understanding the scattering mechanisms through coupling with appropriate theories being developed in parallel.
  6. Nanomanipulation: AFM/STM based manipulation of nanoscale objects to synthesize nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS). Work on manipulation of 5 nm to 30 nm Au balls is currently underway in a multidisciplinary project involving professors from computer science and chemistry (see Laboratory for Molecular Robotics).
  7. Devices: Focus is on detector and light modulator arrays for applications in sensors, digital optical switching, and photonic implementations of neutral network architectures. The latter is carried out in collaboration with Prof. A.R. Tanguay, Jr. (EE-Electrophysics and Materials Science) and Prof. B.K. Jenkins (EE-Systems department).
Contact Information
Web Site:
E-mail:                       
madhukar@usc.edu
Mailing Address:      
Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
University of Southern California
3651 Watt Way, VHE 502
Los Angeles, CA 90089-0241            
Office Location:       
VHE 502
Office Phone:          
(213)740-4325
Fax:                         
(213)740-4333

 
Biographical Sketch
Dr. Madhukar received his BSc (1966) and MSc (Physics, 1968) degrees respectively, from the University of Lucknow and the Indian Institute of Technology (Kanpur) in India. He received his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Physics in 1971 from the California Institute of Technology. Before coming to USC in 1976, Dr. Madhukar was a Post Doctoral Research Fellow at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center of the IBM Corporation and a Research Associate at the James Frank Institute of the University of Chicago. Dr. Madhukar was an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow (1977-81), received three NASA Certificates of Recognition (1981, 1982, 1986) for his research in Si/SiO2 interfaces and compound semiconductor MBE, Outstanding Research Award of the USC School of Engineering in 1988, and the DARPA (ETO) award for Sustained Excellence, 1997 (given to a multidisciplinary team led by Dr. Madhukar). He is the founding President of the Southern California chapter of the Materials Research Society, a member of the New York Academy of Sciences, and Fellow of the American Physical Society. 

In the News
Little Big Science
Energy Experts Urge Transition to New Energy-Fuel Sources
 

Research Images

   

 

  


Selected Publications



Facilities
Appropriate and extensive facilities for all the studies noted above, except for electron microscopy, are available in the Nanostructure Materials and Devices Laboratory (NMDL) directed by A. Madhukar. In addition, a parallel computing platform and visualization facilities are available for the sole purpose of carrying out large scale computer simulation studies relating to the research carried out within NMDL.