Being well separated stearically there is small chance of the acceptor electron recombining with the donor vacancy. This is the initial process in the photosynthetic route. Among the Group's aims are to understand the processes of photoinduced charge transfer that occur and to time resolve the processes experimentally. The results may be related to the Marcus theory of charge transfer. Ideas for an optically clocked triad shift register and other devices are being developed within the Group.
High pressure varies the interatomic distance in solids and liquids.
Since this is a quantity which enters into any theory of condensed matter, the ability to vary it provides valuable data for understanding almost any property. In particular, it is extensively used by geophysicists to understand the states of rocks deep in the earth, and by semiconductor laboratories to vary the electronic band structure and thereby improve devices. Using a recently acquired commercial spectrograph, we are working with the manufacturers, Renishaw plc, to make Raman, absorption and photoreflectance easier to do under high pressure. Coherency Strain in Structural Materials Coherency strain is the strain caused when atoms of a different size are put into part of a coherent single crystal structure. Although it has been long known in metallurgy, it has never been clear if it has detrimental effects or can be beneficial.