The group is involved in design, manufacture and metrology of novel optical functional materials ranging from nanostructures applied to photovoltaic absorbers/ AR coatings/photocathodes, to metasurface-based novel light weight lenses, polarimetric components, holographic elements, vector beams etc., primarily based on nanostructured surfaces and interfaces. Characterization of such nanostructured materials and devices is currently approached in the group by using a combination of in-house developed light scattering spectroscopic polarimeters, and polarimeters combining spectroscopy imaging. In-house manufacture of photonic structures realized using the NTNU nanolab facilities.

The group has a special competence within the design of and application of spectroscopic (Mueller matrix) Ellipsometers, and an established competence in modelling of the optical response of complex systems using standard thin film methods to computational electromagnetics modelling.

The group also has its strength in the characterization and modelling of new thin film photovoltaic materials such as intermediate band oxides in addition to materials for new electronics such as antiferromagnetic materials and half metals with application to spintronics, with a particular strength in wide band metrology of thin films using wide band spectroscopic ellipsometry ranging from THz  to IR to NIR-VIS-UV to the VUV range, in addition to using the available characterization tools of NTNU Nanolab. Recently, the group is extending its competences in ultrafast spectroscopy.

The philosophy of the laboratory is to use a mix of commercial instruments with focus on high accuracy, but with a rigorous in-house understanding of the modeling problem, but also with a strong philosophy to design, build and develop in-house optical instrumentation/modelling methods, with applications developed in close collaboration with collaborating research groups;

• The optoelectronic materials 
• Numerical Science Group
• CRPP-Bordeaux
• CERN

Collaboration with other international institutes in optical characterization (exploring polarimetry/PV/nanophotonics/Thin film);

• Institut Nanosciences de Paris
• ZONA-JKU (Linz, Austria)
• PVIC Univ. Toledo, (Ohio-USA)
• VSB-Technical University of Ostrava
• Nano-Lund (Sweden)
• Eli-Beams/Eli-Alps

Research areas/projects

• Design, manufacture and characterization of photonic devices based on plasmonic and dielectric metasurfaces/optical nanostructures
• Multifunctional wide band Spectroscopic Mueller Matrix Microscope 
• Realization of Spectroscopic Mueller Matrix light scattering diffract-scatter-ometer
• Optical properties of PV structures and nanostructured materials
• AntiFerromagnetic thin film Materials (AFMs) and Half Metal-AFMs
• Ultra-fast spectroscopy.
• Photocathodes and breakdown in accelerators