Experimental Condensed Matter Physics
SURFLAB High Resolution Ellipsometry Laboratory
Experimental Condensed Matter Physics
SURFLAB High Resolution Ellipsometry Laboratory
Table with substrates cleaned under the hood
Rack with instrumentation control electronics developed and implemented in our laboratory.
PhD student Daniel Saavedra inserts an ultra-clean Si substrate into the Ultra High Vacuum chamber, to then initiate the growth process of a biological membrane (e.g. a lipid bilayer). Proper substrate cleanliness is important to ensure the interaction of molecules with a clear-cut surface. Our very high resolution ellipsometer (VHRE) is crucial to controlling the degree of cleanliness of the substrates, because it is able to optically detect traces of contaminants on the surface (e.g. dirt on the ultrapure gas cylinders or connectors, which we use to dry the samples).
Ultra High Vacuum System with Turbomolecular Pump and Scroll Pump
Ultra High Vacuum System with turbomolecular pump and Scroll pump, oil-free, for the revolutionary method of growing thin films and artificial biological membranes in Ultra High Vacuum, that is, in the total absence of solvents and water. The formation of these “building blocks” of life shows that elements crucial for the generation of life can be formed and preserved in ultra-high vacuum conditions (-> Life Formation -> Astrobiology, etc.)
Materials we need to maintain
Materials we need to maintain, adapt, and deploy our equipment. SurfLab students develop the ability to design customized equipment for our research to meet the international demands of Physics PhDs.
SurfLab PhD student
SurfLab doctoral student (Daniel Saavedra), prepares a control film using solvent (conventional method, used for decades in Biology and Life Science laboratories) by means of “no coating”.
Table with substrates cleaned under the hood
Rack with instrumentation control electronics developed and implemented in our laboratory.
PhD student Daniel Saavedra inserts an ultra-clean Si substrate into the Ultra High Vacuum chamber, to then initiate the growth process of a biological membrane (e.g. a lipid bilayer). Proper substrate cleanliness is important to ensure the interaction of molecules with a clear-cut surface. Our very high resolution ellipsometer (VHRE) is crucial to controlling the degree of cleanliness of the substrates, because it is able to optically detect traces of contaminants on the surface (e.g. dirt on the ultrapure gas cylinders or connectors, which we use to dry the samples).
Ultra High Vacuum System with Turbomolecular Pump and Scroll Pump
Ultra High Vacuum System with turbomolecular pump and Scroll pump, oil-free, for the revolutionary method of growing thin films and artificial biological membranes in Ultra High Vacuum, that is, in the total absence of solvents and water. The formation of these “building blocks” of life shows that elements crucial for the generation of life can be formed and preserved in ultra-high vacuum conditions (-> Life Formation -> Astrobiology, etc.)
Materials we need to maintain
Materials we need to maintain, adapt, and deploy our equipment. SurfLab students develop the ability to design customized equipment for our research to meet the international demands of Physics PhDs.
SurfLab PhD student
SurfLab doctoral student (Daniel Saavedra), prepares a control film using solvent (conventional method, used for decades in Biology and Life Science laboratories) by means of “no coating”.
Welcome to the SURFLAB High Resolution Ellipsometry Laboratory. Directed by professor Ulrich Volkmann. In this laboratory we carry out experimental research in Experimental Condensed Matter Physics.
We invite you to click on each of the highlighted points to learn more about our techniques and equipment.