Tobias Hanrath
Tobias Hanrath is the Marjorie L. Hart ’50 Professor in Engineering, in the Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He studies the role nanostructured materials to play in next generation energy technologies.
His research focuses on the fundamental study of optoelectronic properties of semiconductor nanocrystals; this work is inspired by the potential application of these materials in solar energy conversion and energy storage devices. These semiconductor nanocrystals provide a diverse set of building blocks whose electronic and optical properties differ from their bulk counterparts due to the spatial wavefunction confinement. This quantum confinement effect allows us to engineer the materials properties through simple adjustments in nanocrystal size, shape, composition, and surface chemistry. In addition to their immense potential for technological applications, these materials also provide a material system to experimentally test fundamental quantum mechanical concepts.