Surface-wave phenomena and anisotropic photoluminescence in nano-film structures

The investigation of surfaces and thin films is of particular interest in current research as it provides a basis for a multiplicity of applications such as waveguides, sensors, solar cells and optoelectronics. The losses of light emitting structures, here CdSe nano-platelets, can be reduced by harmonizing the orientation of the transition dipoles with the optical mode that the light is coupled to. The electronic structure of the emitting nanoparticle can be optimized via its shape and the density of states strongly depends on the dielectric function of the environment which can be tuned to modify the emission characteristics.