Tools and Instruments

The tools used to create and characterize nanoscale materials are essential to the development of nanotechnology. The optical microscope was one of the first instruments for imaging at resolutions beyond the human eye (~100 µm). However, lightwave diffraction limits conventional optical microscopy and thus other, often unique, approaches are needed to image and analyze nanostructures.

The research and training environment provided by our laboratory ranges from nanomaterials synthesis and imaging to nanoscale characterization, device fabrication/prototyping, modeling and applications, as outlined below:

Nanonics Scanning Probe Microscope
Olympus BXFM Optical Microscope
Leica S6D Optical Microscope
B&L StereoZoom 4 Optical Microscope

CVD Tube Furnace
Nanolithography
Thermal Evaporator
Fritsch Grinding Mill
Class 100 Laminar Flow Workstation
Chemical/Wet Processing, Spin-Coater, Ovens, etc.

Janis Electrical Probe Station
Keithley 4200-SCS Semiconductor Characterization System
Gas Sensor Characterization
Photoconductance
Contact Angle

First-Principles Atomistic Electronic Structure Calculations
Density Functional Theory
Quantum Electronic Transport
SPICE

Large scale computations are supported by the Digital Research Alliance of Canada.

Figure 3. Lab locations and general layout.

Lab

The laboratory consists of two locations (Figure 3) within the Engineering Lab Wing (ELW) on the main University of Victoria campus.

Support

Funding and support provided by the following Canadian government agencies and programs

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