Nanophysics Laboratory

The facility has a suite of instruments devoted to Surface Science, the multidisciplinary topic at the nanoscale intersection of physics and chemistry. The atomic structure, electronic structure and composition of materials can be studied right down to the atomic level. The facility is currently able to take measurements down to liquid nitrogen temperature. The equipment itself can operate as low as 4 K if liquid helium can be provided.

The flagship technique of the nanophysics world, and of this laboratory, is low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy. This is the technique that provides atomic resolution images of surfaces. It simultaneously provides detailed information on the electronic structure of the surface, for example, whether the surface, or an individual atom or molecule, is metallic or semiconducting and details thereof. In addition, it can in principle resolve magnetic domains.