AREAS OF INTEREST:

• Ultrafast Optical Studies of Electron Dynamics in Condensed Matter Systems
• Optical and Electronic Properties of Metallic and Semiconducting Nanoparticles
• Chemistry and Characterization of Metallic Nanoshells

RESEARCH:

Richard Averitt came to Rice in 1991 after completing his B.S. in Electrical Engineering at UCSD. His research interests lie in the area of metallic and semiconducting clusters as prepared via solution phase chemistry. Specifically, Rick's PhD work focussed on the optical properties of a new type of nanoparticle; metallic nanoshells. Metallic nanoshells consist of a nanometer dielectric core surrounded by a thin metal shell. Rick's thesis work involved understanding the nature of the unique optical properties of nanoshells. In addition, Rick studied the femtosecond electron dynamics of gold nanoshells using femtosecond time-resolved optical spectroscopy. The workhorse of these experiments is a home-built cavity-dumped Ti:Sapphire laser which operates in the 780 - 850 nm range. Rick completed his PhD in February 1998. His thesis is entitled "Gold Nanoshells: Optical Properties and Femtosecond Electron Dynamics." Rick is worked in the Halas lab as a postdoctoral associate for a year after receiving his PhD. During this time his research was focussed on understanding interface mediated hot-electron relaxation in metal nanoshells.

CURRENT WHEREABOUTS:

Rick began working as a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of A. J. Taylor at Los Alamos National Laboratory in February 1999. His work at LANL involves ultrafast optical and terahertz studies of electron dynamics in superconductors and other correlated electron systems.