The Gehring lab focuses on understanding the physics of mesoscopic and nanoscale functional devices. To this end, we study functionalities such as spin-to-charge conversion in topological materials or thermoelectric heat-to-charge conversion in single-molecule devices using cryogenic magnetotransport experiments and scanning probe microscopy.
Scanning thermal microscopy
We perform local thermometry and local thermal gating on 2-D materials with a lateral resolution of less than 100 nm using SThM. We want to investigate the influence of structural defects, magnetic domain structure or local band structure variations on the thermoelectric efficiency.
Molecular (thermo-)electrics
We have developed device architectures that allow us to measure the electronic and thermoelectric properties of single molecules simultaneously. We use this to show how strong correlations, ground states with high spin or molecular vibrations influence the thermoelectric response. In this way, we try to validate theories about which factors have the strongest effect on thermoelectric properties and show the synthetic directions that can be used to optimise the conversion of heat into energy in individual molecules.
2D quantum materials
We use (twisted) 2D materials to develop topological phases or new magnetic structures. For this purpose, we study thin films (and heterostructures) of topological materials such as topological insulators, Weyl or Dirac semimetals and 2-dimensional magnets. The goal is to exploit the unique properties of these low-dimensional quantum materials to enable electronic devices with novel functions, such as next-generation spin-caloritronic energy harvesters, electronic components for neuromorphic computing or ultrafast memory devices.
More information on Pascal Gehring's website.