The team Nanophysics and Semiconductors (NPSC) is not only one of the research team at Institut NEEL, but it is also a joint research group between Institut NEEL-CNRS and IRIG-CEA (previously INAC-CEA). The history of the team goes back to 1986: a joint team CNRS-CEA, involving altogether about 10 researchers, was created at that time to develop the Molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) growth of II-VI semiconductors. Over the years, the focus and size of the team has enlarged and its name changed. The joint team NPSC has now about 65 members including PhD students and postdocs. Among the permanent researchers of the joint team, 18 are affiliated to Institut NEEL, 10 are affiliated to CEA-IRIG.
NPSC mainly focuses on fundamental research in nanoscience, exploring new physical phenomena, and sometimes their potential applications, related to quantum confinement in low-dimensional II-VI and III-V semiconductor heterostructures. These studies rely on research activities dedicated both to the fabrication and to the physical studies of high-quality samples. The expertise of the team is based on arsenide, nitride, selenide and telluride compounds, using advanced epitaxial techniques (MBE, metal organic chemical vapor deposition MOCVD), technological processing, structural characterization, as well as state-of-the-art optical spectroscopy setups. The activity is also supported by theoretical developments in quantum mechanics.
In recent years, our research has included for instance the growth of nanowires made of different compounds, the development of materials emitting from THz to UV, as well as semiconductor QDs for single photon emission or single spin manipulation. We aim at mastering not only specific emitters but also their photonic environment for novel optoelectronics devices. We are particularly interested in single spin manipulation, efficient single photon sources, and coherence in quantum optics.
Molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) chambers (located at CEA, building C5)
Optical spectroscopy setups
Other expertise
NPSC has a long-standing expertise in the field of epitaxy of semiconductor materials and heterostructures. Our activities are of two kinds: (i) research into the physics of epitaxy by itself, and (ii) development of materials of interest to tackle new phenomena in the field of condensed matter physics, usually for fundamental research but also with an interest for possible applications.
The team is equipped with an ensemble of six Molecular Beam Epitaxy chambers (MBE) and one Metal-Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition machine (MOCVD). Those equipments can cover a wide range of materials (arsenides, tellurides, selenides, nitrides and oxides) known to interact with light from IR to UV, for quantum optics and nano-photonics, or for their specific transport properties, from fundamental topological aspects to power electronics.
To go further, with our know-how we use epitaxy to develop semiconductor objects of various dimensionalities (quantum dots, nanowires, quantum wells, 2D materials), complex epitaxial interfaces between compounds who have no atoms in common, and materials in unstable phases.
Finally, among our motivations for growing semiconductors objects, the idea of “single object”, of “localization” or “confinement” is often central: localization of a spin (on a single impurity), confinement or charge carriers (at the nanometer scale) and/or confinement of photons (at the micrometer scale), integrating notions such as quantum dots or quantum wells with microcavities or photonic wires.
Concerning the control of spins in semiconductors, over the period, different objects were developed and studied, including single spin systems or Diluted Magnetic Semiconductors (DMS): (i) strain free Mn-doped QDs (ii) Mn-doped self-assembled QDs charged with a single hole, (iii) Cr-doped self-assembled QDs, (iv) DMS in nanowires QDs.
In strain free Mn-doped QDs, a spin system which does not present any magnetic anisotropy, we have studied the dynamics of coupled electronic and nuclear spins of a single atom and showed that a weak magnetic field has to be applied to suppress the electron-nuclei flip-flops and restore a Mn spin memory. This system is promising to study the coherent dynamics of a single nuclear spin in a solid-state environment. On the contrary, a hybrid hole-Mn spin presents a large magnetic anisotropy. This should be favorable to obtain a spin memory at zero field. However, we have demonstrated that hole-Mn has a spin relaxation in the 100 ns range induced by interplay of the hole-Mn exchange interaction and coupling to the strain field of acoustic phonons.
Cr incorporated in II-VI semiconductors carries an orbital momentum, and most of its isotopes have no nuclear spins. It is in that sense complementary to Mn. The orbital momentum connects efficiently the Cr spin to its strain environment through the crystal field and the spin-orbit coupling. This makes Cr a very promising qubit for the development of spin nano-mechanical systems. We have demonstrated the optical control of the spin of a Cr atom and studied its spin dynamics. We are now developing devices for a coherent mechanical driving of a Cr spin with surface acoustic waves.
The research activity on II-VI DMS nanowire heterostructures continued with the main goal to stabilize a light hole ground state in elongated magnetic quantum dots. The ANR project ESPADON (coordinated by the team), in collaboration with C2N and IRIG, is based on: the MBE growth of quantum dots along nanowires, (ii) their structural characterization, magneto-optical spectroscopy and numerical simulations. The growth of CdMnTe-ZnTe nanowire quantum dots with different aspect ratio (length over diameter ratio ranging from 0.5 to 2) has been studied extensively revealing the critical growth temperature window for quantum dot insertion. Single dot spectroscopy (cathodo-luminescence, microphotoluminence) has been performed with samples previously characterized by structural techniques, Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM), Energy Dispersive X ray spectroscopy in collaboration with the MRS team (M. Den Hertog), and CEA-IRIG (E. Robin). Magneto-optical spectroscopy and Fourier microscopy carried out on quantum dots having an aspect ratio about 2 revealed the presence of a light-hole ground state in the dot. These experimental results were found to be in good agreement with 6 band k.p advanced numerical simulations (strain, electronic properties, Zeeman effect) developed in collaboration with CEA-IRIG (Y.-M. Niquet).
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Optical nonlinearities usually appear for large intensities, but discrete transitions allow for giant nonlinearities operating at the single-photon level. We have demonstrated a two-mode giant nonlinearity with a single semiconductor quantum dot (QD) embedded in a photonic wire antenna. We have exploited two detuned optical transitions associated with the exciton-biexciton QD level scheme. Owing to the broadband waveguide antenna, the two transitions were efficiently interfaced with two free-space laser beams. We have shown [1] that the reflection of one laser beam can be controlled by the other beam, with a threshold power as low as 10 photons per exciton lifetime (1.6 nW). Such a two-color nonlinearity opens appealing perspectives for the realization of ultralow-power logical gates and optical quantum gates, and could also be implemented in an integrated photonic circuit based on planar waveguides.
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Hybrid quantum optomechanical systems offer an interface between a single two-level system and a macroscopical mechanical degree of freedom.
One of the major objectives for developing this concept is the realization of a quantum interface between a qubit and a mechanical oscillator with important technological applications for quantum information and ultra-sensitive measurements
We have built a hybrid system made of a vibrating microwire coupled to a single semiconductor quantum dot (QD) via material strain. We have shown a few years ago, that the QD excitonic transition energy can thus be modulated by the microwire motion [1] (cf Fig.2a,b). We have used this property to locate very precisely QD within the microwire [2] (cf Fig.2c).
Following a theoretical proposal [3], we have demonstrated the reverse effect whereby the wire is set in motion by the resonant drive of a single QD exciton with a laser modulated at the mechanical frequency [4] (Fig. 3). The resulting driving force is found to be almost 3 orders of magnitude larger than radiation pressure.
From a fundamental aspect, this state dependent force offers a convenient strategy to map the QD quantum state onto a mechanical degree of freedom.
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The degree of control in light-matter interaction in solids is ever increasing, bringing about a vast field of new resources both for new applications and for addressing new fundamental issues. Exciton-polaritons for instance can be viewed as interacting photons, stored in the spacer of a semiconductor microcavity, that exhibit all the features of a nonequilibrium quantum fluid. We examine the thermodynamical properties of this exotic fluid: its ability to conduct, capture and dissipate heat, and its ability to produce work under the form of a coherent phonon field.
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Other means of control are provided by using metallic nanostructures sustaining plasmonics modes. We develop top-down nanofabrication processes for coupling metallic nanoantennas to semiconducting nanowires produced by our team or non-linear nanocrystals, in the frame of an active collaboration with the NOF and OPTIMA teams. The nanoscale control allows designing hybrid nanostructures that can strongly enhance for example the second-harmonic generation or the emission of rare-earth luminescent centers as more recently considered.
We develop a new interpretation for quantum mechanics that is based on contextual objectivity and quantization. This leads, e.g., to original views on the origin of randomness and to the development of new concepts in quantum thermodynamics.
We establish a new research area on the study of quantum causality. Here the objective is to study the new types of causal relations that may exist in the quantum world. Indeed, quantum causal relations may have genuinely quantum features, and may be subject to similar quantum indefiniteness as quantum states: one can, e.g., find some “quantum superpositions of causal relations”. Along this line of research, we investigate a new framework that allows one to study quantum processes without imposing a well-defined causal structure; we clarify the concepts of interest and how to verify them in practice. We contribute to experimental demonstrations of such processes, and investigate their possible applications for quantum information processing.
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We also investigate other aspects of the “quantum weirdness”, related in particular to the uncertainty principle, to the status of the wave function in quantum theory, to quantum entanglement and to quantum (or even post-quantum) nonlocality.
Regarding thermodynamics, we work on the energetic footprints of quantum noise and information. The essence of classical thermodynamics at the microscopic scale is to extract energy from hot baths and convert it into useful energy (work), turning thermal noise into a resource. Reciprocally, thermodynamics provides fundamental concepts to estimate the energetic cost of fighting against noise to maintain order. Since information is stored in physical systems, it also obeys the laws of thermodynamics.
Our goal is to transpose the concepts and tools of (information) thermodynamics to the case where noise and information become quantum. On the one hand, this allows designing realistic nano-engines with no classical equivalent (e.g. coherence or quantum measurement driven engines, autonomous quantum Maxwell’s demons…) with clear quantum boosts and genuine quantum operating modes. The studies are conducted in collaboration with cutting edge experimentalists, on platforms with exquisite quantum control: semi-conducting quantum dots deterministically coupled to high Q cavities, superconducting circuits, Rydberg atoms. A complementary axis consists in bridging the gap between optomechanical systems and quantum thermodynamics, owing to the potential of these systems for direct measurement of work exchanges.
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Monolayers (MLs) of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), like {Mo,W}{S,Se,Te}2, are direct bandgap semiconductors displaying many intriguing properties. Apart from their intrinsic two-dimensional character, they host excitons with binding energy exceeding 10% of their bandgap – nearly 2 orders of magnitude more than in standard semiconductors, like GaAs. This, combined with the band structure generating spin-valley locking of excitons, has driven an intense research, also as regards their optical response. In particular, the spectral lineshape and spectral width are usually dominated by the inhomogeneous broadening due to such disorder. In recent years, we have used the four-wave mixing microscopy (FWM) setup that we developed, to accurately measure homogeneous and inhomogeneous broadenings of bare TMD MLs. Thanks to the microscopy configuration, we could perform spatial imaging of both quantities and indicated their correlations, revealing a general link between the exciton coherence volume, governed by the disorder, and its radiative rate, which can be read from the homogeneous linewidth.
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In the team, we develop nanowires based on GaAs and InAs semiconductors. InAs and GaAs can be combined in heterostructures to form quantum dots. We use those quantum dots for single photon emission applications.
Our InAs nanowires are also combined with superconductors to form core shell heterostructures. They are integrated into quantum devices such as gatemon quantum bits or into devices designed to search for exotic particles that live in topological superconductors.
2023 post-doc – PICCIONE Nicolo
2023 thèse – GAIGNARD Maxime
2023 thèse – GOES Bruno
2023 post-doc – MAFFEI Maria
2022 thèse – BRESQUE Léa
2022 post-doc – WEIN Stephen
2022 post-doc – NAHRA Mackrine
2022 thèse – CHEN An-Hsi
2022 post-doc – DARDAILLON Rémi
2022 thèse – LAZOURENKO-DOURDENT Hippolyte
2022 thèse – LETERTRE Laurie
2021 thèse – FELLOUS-ASIANI Marco
2021 thèse – VINCENTE Rémi
2021 thèse – TIWARI Vivekanand
2021 thèse – KLOSS Enzo
2020 post-doc – CAMATI Patrice
2020 post-doc – MARIANI Cristian
2020 thèse – WECHS Julian
2019 thèse – MONSEL Juliette
2019 thèse – MORATIS Kimon
2019 thèse – VAISH Nitika
2019 thèse – JALOUSTRE Lucas
2018 thèse – REZNYCHENKO Bogdan
2018 post-doc – ABBOTT Alastair
2018 post-doc – KETTLER jan
2018 thèse – LAFUENTE-SAMPIETRO Alban
2018 thèse – BEZNASYUK Daria
2017 thèse – ELOUARD Cyril
2017 thèse – DELMONTE Valentin
2017 post-doc – JAKUBCZYK Tomasz
2017 post-doc – DE-ASSIS Pierre-Louis
2017 thèse – TUMANOV Dmitrii
2017 thèse – ORRU Marta
2016 thèse – JEANNIN Mathieu
2016 post-doc – TAN Siew-li
2016 thèse – NGUYEN Hoai-anh
2016 post-doc – FERRARI Alberto
2016 thèse – ARTIOLI Alberto
2015 post-doc – GRANGE Thomas
2015 post-doc – VACANTI Giovani
2015 thèse – MERMILLOD Quentin
2015 post-doc – KLEMBT Sebastian
2015 thèse – RUEDA-FONSECA Pamela
2013 thèse – ELOUNEG-JAMROZ Myriam
2013 thèse – GERARD Lionel
2013 thèse – STEPANOV Petr
2012 thèse – BOUNOUAR Samir
2012 thèse – CAO Chong long
2012 thèse – DINIZ Igor
2012 thèse – TRICHET Aurélien
2012 thèse – VALENTE Daniele
2012 thèse – YEO Inah
2012 post-doc – BRUNETTI Adalberto
2012 post-doc – FRAS François
2012 post-doc – MEDARD François
2011 thèse – LE GALL Claire
2011 post-doc – PORTOLAN Stephano
2010 thèse – YU Ing-Song
2010 post-doc – WOJNAR Piotr
2010 post-doc – KOLODKA Roman
2009 thèse – CLEMENT Thomas
2009 thèse – MUNSCH Mathieu
2009 thèse – SALLEN Gregory
2008 thèse – NAJJAR Rita
Position type: Stages Master-2 & Thèse
Contact: SONGMUANG Rudeesun -
In recent decades, there has been significant progress in biomedical devices that can be implanted in the human body for diagnostic and treatment purposes. The miniaturization of these devices is critical to reduce their impact on human activities. However, these devices mostly rely on batteries which presents a challenge in reducing their size while prolonging their operational lifespan. Recent advancements in piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEHs) offer a solution for creating energy-autonomous devices by converting mechanical energy from human movements into electricity. Yet, traditional bulky-type energy conversion systems are not suitable for this application due to incompatible contact with soft tissue and curved surfaces. Therefore, thin, flexible, and lightweight PEHs are essential.
Position type: Stages Master-2 & Thèse
Contact: Besombes Lucien - 04 56 38 71 58
Individual spins in semiconductors hold great promise for the development of quantum information technologies. Thanks to their long-expected coherence times, localized spins on individual defects are a medium of choice for quantum information storage, and the semiconductor platform offers interesting integration prospects. For long-range coupling of localized spins acting as quantum nodes, a spin-photon interface is required. We aim to exploit the optical properties of a quantum dot to probe and control the coherent dynamics of the spin of an embedded individual magnetic atom.
Position type: Stages Master-2 & Thèse
Contact: Thierry CHANELIERE - 04 76 88 10 07
The main objective is to integrate erbium doped materials into a photonic platform and perform a demonstration of quantum storage using this device. Based on a recognized national consortium, we propose firstly to fabricate elementary wafer supporting rare-earth doped crystals. After a secondary integration/fabrication step to produce a waveguide, we propose to perform a quantum memory demonstration using this unique device.
To follow-up, a PhD funding is available for a motivated candidate.
Person in charge: Lucien BESOMBES, Edith BELLET-AMALRIC
Permanents
Students & Post-docs & CDD
Invited & Others
Regis ANDRE
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
regis.andre [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 38 67
Office: CEA-C5-630
Lucien BESOMBES
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
lucien.besombes [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 71 58
Office: C3-201
Cyril BRANCIARD
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
cyril.branciard [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 70 60
Office: C3-212
Thierry CHANELIERE
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
thierry.chaneliere [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 07 76 88 10 07
Office: C3-201
Joël CIBERT
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
Joel.Cibert [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 11 93
Office: C3-200
Lorenzo DE-SANTIS
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
lorenzo.de-santis [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 90 77
Office: C3-211
David FERRAND
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
david.ferrand [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 70 45
Office: C3-200
Moïra HOCEVAR
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
moira.hocevar [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 35 13
Office: CEA-C5-628
Jacek KASPRZAK
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
jacek.kasprzak [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 71 64
Office: C3-212
Dang LE-SI
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
lesidang [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 74 18
Office: C3-211
Pierre LEMONDE
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
pierre.lemonde [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 10 90
Office: C3-211
Henri MARIETTE
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
henri.mariette [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 51 97
Office: CEA-C5-683
Gilles NOGUES
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
gilles.nogues [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 71 64
Office: C3-212
Jean-Philippe POIZAT
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
jean-philippe.poizat [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 71 65
Office: F-405
Rudeesun SONGMUANG
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
rudeesun.songmuang [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 10 44
Office: F-212
Emilien DE-BANK
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
emilien.de-bank [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Referent: Cyril BRANCIARD
Francis GRANGER
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
francis.granger [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-C5-100
Referent: Gilles NOGUES
Ved KUNTE
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
ved.kunte [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 78 13
Office: F-422
Referent: Cyril BRANCIARD
Linh Khanh LE
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
linh-khanh.le [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: David FERRAND
Danylo MOSIIETS
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
danylo.mosiiets [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Moïra HOCEVAR
Samyak PRASAD
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
samyak.prasad [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Alexia AUFFEVES
Davide ROMANO
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
davide.romano [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 76 88 10 42
Office: F-211
Referent: Cyril BRANCIARD
Raphaël ROUSSET-ZENOU
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
raphael.rousset-zenou [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Moïra HOCEVAR
Benjamin VIOLLET
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
benjamin.viollet [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-X
Referent: Moïra HOCEVAR
Rakia ZOUAOUI
Personnel Chercheur - CNRS
rakia.zouaoui [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Moïra HOCEVAR
Edith BELLET-AMALRIC
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
edith.bellet-amalric [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 46 04
Office: CEA-C5-629
Joël BLEUSE
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
joel.bleuse [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 44 73
Office: CEA-C5-612
Kai-Siang CHEN
Personnel Chercheur - Université de Cheng Kung - Taiwan
kai-siang.chen [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Cyril BRANCIARD
Julien CLAUDON
Personnel Chercheur - CEA/INAC
julien.claudon [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 49 84
Office: CEA-C5-627
Ettore COCCATO
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
ettore.coccato [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-X
Referent: Eva MONROY
Yoann CURE
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
yoann.cure [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 99 34
Office: CEA-C5-611
Bruno DAUDIN
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
bruno.daudin [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 37 50
Office: CEA-C5-682
Christophe DURAND
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
christophe.durand [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 19 77
Office: CEA-C5-677
Maxime GAIGNARD
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
maxime.gaignard [at] cea.fr
Office: CEA-C5-631
Referent: Jean-Philippe POIZAT
Bruno GAYRAL
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
bruno.gayral [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 26 73
Office: CEA-C5-637
Jean-Michel GERARD
Personnel Chercheur - CEA/INAC
jean-michel.gerard [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 31 34
Office: CEA-C5-664
Maarten GROTHUS
Personnel Chercheur - INRIA
maarten.grothus [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 71 64
Office: C3-212
Referent: Cyril BRANCIARD
Jonathan HENRIQUES
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
jonathan.henriques [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-X
Referent: Christophe DURAND
Kenshiro HORAI
Personnel Chercheur - Universtité de Tsukuba
kenshiro.horai [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: F-323
Referent: Lucien BESOMBES
Fabien JOURDAN
Personnel Technique - CEA
fabien.jourdan [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 52 19
Office: CEA-C5-615
Kuntheak KHENG
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
kuntheak.kheng [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 47 01
Office: CEA-C5-613
Pimchanok LEUASOONGNOEN
Personnel Chercheur - Institut de technologie de Ladkrabang - Thailande
pimchanok.leuasoongnoen [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Phone: 04 56 38 70 11
Office: F-208
Referent: Rudeesun SONGMUANG
Eva MONROY
Personnel Chercheur - CEA
eva.monroy [at] cea.fr
Phone: 04 38 78 90 68
Office: CEA-C5-614
Jesper NYGARD
Personnel Chercheur - Université de Copenhague
jesper.nygard [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-X
Referent: Moïra HOCEVAR
Laura Daniela VALLEJO-MELGAREJO
Personnel Chercheur - UGA
laura-daniela.vallejo-melgarejo [at] neel.cnrs.fr
Office: CEA-X
Referent: Edith BELLET-AMALRIC