Our laboratory is located in the Department of Physics of the University of Basel in Switzerland. Our research is focused on the engineering and measurements of phonons and phonon transport in nanostructures.

Phonons are quantized quasi-particles that represent lattice vibrations in crystalline solids. They are responsible for the transmission of sound and heat, and play a crucial role in solid state physics also through their interactions with electrons and photons.
In the last decades, the ability to control photons and electrons paved the way for extraordinary technological developments in electronic and optoelectronic applications. Analogous thermal and acoustic devices could be engineered with a similar degree of control of phonons, which is still lacking.

The recently growing research field of “phononics” aims at the understanding and control of phonons in condensed matter, with great potential also for new technological applications. The controlled modification of phonon dispersion, phonon interactions, and phonon transport define the concept of phonon engineering, which allows controlling heat propagation in materials, and fundamentally tuning electron-phonon and photon-phonon interactions.