Cryocooling for Quantum Dots at the University of California, Merced.
Cooling to cryogenic temperatures is essential for studying fundamental properties of nanostructures such as quantum dots. Dr. Michael Scheibner, of the University of California, Merced, is analyzing optical spectra as part of his research on coupling mechanisms between quantum dots. In order to distinguish small features in the spectrum of individual nanostructures, he needs to have narrow spectral lines and high mechanical stability. By using an optical cryostat and cooling his samples to less than 10K, the phonon scattering is reduced and in turn the spectral lines narrow. Vibration isolation of the cryostat enables him to perform optical measurements on one individual nanostructure for days at at a time. To learn more about Michaels work, look up M. Scheibner et al., Nature Phys., 4, 291 (2008) or M. Scheibner et al., Solid State Communications 1427 (2009)  or find info on his group at: http://faculty.ucmerced.edu/mscheibner/index.html.