Rolf Binder

Additional Affiliations

• Professor of Physics

Employment 

• Professor: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 2005-present
• Professor: The University of Arizona, Department of Physics, 2005-present
• Associate Professor: The University of Arizona, Department of Physics, 2004-2005
• Associate Professor: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 2000-2005
• Assistant Professor: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 1994-2000
• Assistant Research Professor: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 1993-1994
• Associate Research Scientist: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 1992-1993
• Research Associate: The University of Arizona, College of Optical Sciences, 1989-1991
• Research Assistant: The University of Dortmund (Germany), 1985-1988
• Teaching Assistant: The University of Dortmund (Germany), 1984-1987

Professional Affiliations and Activities

• American Physical Society: Member
• Deutsch Physikalische Gesellschaft: Member
• Fundamental Optical Processes in Semiconductors Conference: Program Committee, Member, 2007-2012
• International Workshop on Nonlinear Optics and Excitation Kinetics in Semiconductors: Program Committee, Member, 2006
• The Optical Society (OSA): Member
• OSA: New Focus/Bookham Student Award, Committee, Member, 2005-2006
• OSA: Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics and International Quantum Electronics Conference, Program Committee, Member, 2004
• OSA: Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics and Quantum Electronics and Laser Science, Program Committee, Member, 2005-2006
• SPIE: Physics and Simulation of Optoelectronic Devices Conference, Committee Member, 1997-2002
• SPIE: Laser Refrigeration of Solids Conference, Program Committee, Member, 2008-2012

Awards and Honors

• American Physical Society: Outstanding Referee, 2009
• Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft: Postdoctoral Fellowship
• Graduiertenfoerderung des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany: Fellowship
• The Optical Society (OSA): Fellow, 2007

Specific Research Interests

• Semiconductor optics.
• Many-particle physics.
• Excitons.
• Biexcitons.
• Nonlinear optical response.
• Non-equilibrium Green's functions.
• Feynman diagrams.
• Density-matrix and dynamics-controlled truncation.
• Four-wave mixing.
• Optical instabilities.
• Quantum wells.
• Nanomembranes.
• Stress and strain.
• Structural analysis.
• Microcavities.
• Nonlinear absorption.
• Ultrafast processes.
• Electromagnetically induced transparency.
• Electron relaxation.
• Dynamic screening.
• Thermalization.
• Luminescence spectra.
• Slow light.
• Fast light.
• Light forces.
• Optical refrigeration.
• Laser cooling of solids.
• Optical fibers.
• Heat transport.

Research Summary

The main research focus in our group is on theoretical investigations of the optical properties of semiconductor structures. Our fundamental theoretical investigations of semiconductors are based on microscopic quantum-mechanical many-body theories and include ultrafast nonlinear optical processes in bulk semiconductors and quantum-well structures. Recent examples of research projects include electromagnetically-induced transparency, slow light effects in semiconductor heterostructures, nonlinear spectroscopy and applications of Bragg-spaced multiple quantum wells, optical refrigeration of semiconductors, optical four-wave mixing instabilities in semiconductor quantum wells systems, including microcavities, and excitonic response of semiconductor nanomembranes. In addition to the semiconductor research, we are investigating optical refrigeration in optical fibers.