CdTe is one of the most promising technologies for industrial production of thin film PV modules. Solar Cells with efficiencies of up to 15.6% were produced in our lab. More...

The newly formed Funtional Inorganic Materials Group (Prof. Maksym Kovalenko) aims to link basic and applied research in the areas of synthesis, self-organization and applications of inorganic functional materials, with specific focus on colloidal nanostructures. To enhance such interdisciplinary scientific program, the research activities are carried out at two institutions within the ETH Domain: EMPA and ETH Zurich.

Central to our efforts is the synthesis of inorganic nanocrystals ("NCs"), and the integration and/or self-assembly of NCs into multifunctional solid state structures. Through the proper design and characterization of NC surface chemistry and inter-NC medium, we aim to transform the individual properties of NCs into useful collective properties of NC-based solids. Synthetic work and rigorous materials characterization are the cornerstones of our research. Collectively, these experimental efforts should ultimately provide us with general, cost-efficient, and high-throughput routes to solid-state nanostructured materials for applications in energy conversion and storage.

Sieghard Seyrling
last modified: Mar 5, 2012