Abstract: Due to spatial confinement, low-dimensional materials have attracted significant attention as emerging quantum materials. Thanks to spectacular progress in the development of atomically precise bottom-up synthesis methods, accurate knowledge of atomic content and configurations is now readily available, making it possible to create a strong link between theoretically predicted properties and their experimental observation. Several characterization techniques have been employed to improve the understanding of these materials, to establish their crystal structure, purity, and internal configurations. In particular, Raman spectroscopy has demonstrated that structural vibrations are reliable indicators of their structure and, in turn, of their fundamental properties.

 

In this talk, I will provide an overview of the theoretical and computational research performed in my group in the area of phonon calculations and demonstrate how quantum mechanical studies and Raman scattering are combined to determine the fundamental structural properties in an array of low-dimensional materials. In addition to discussing examples of such studies performed on twisted bilayer systems, transition metal dichalcogenides, graphene nanoribbons, and quantum dot over the past few years, I will also briefly discuss our ongoing efforts in the use of high-throughput and machine-learning methods and discuss the importance of ultra-low-frequency vibrational modes in the study of these materials. At the end of the talk, I will also present recent results obtained on TERS (tip enhanced Raman spectroscopy).

 

Hosted by Andrew Cupo & Professor Lorenza Viola