(Photo Dec 2014)

Peter D. Persans

Professor of Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy
and Center for Integrated Electronics

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 110 Eighth Street, Troy, NY 12180-3590
Telephone: 518-276-2934
FAX: 518-276-6680
email: persap(at)rpi.edu
web:http://www.rpi.edu/~persap

Office: Science Center, Room 1C10

REU in Physics, Applied Physics, and Astronomy at Rensselaer – We will not be hosting a Physics REU site at Rensselaer in Summer 2023.

Courses

Fall 2022
PHYS 1140 – Introductory Modern Physics (for Physics freshmen)

PHYS 1200 – Physics 2
PHYS 4960 - Physics Mentoring

PHYS 1960 – Professional Development for Physicists

PHYS 2960/4960 –Teaching Physics Seminar
Spring 2023
PHYS 2210 – Quantum Physics 1
PHYS 2220 – Quantum Physics 2

Physics Advising – Presentations

Finding Your Way Through Physics at Rensselaer

Preparation for Graduate School and the Physics GRE

Education and Employment

BS Physics -1975 -Polytechnic Institute of New York
PhD Physics -1982 -University of Chicago (Thesis advisor: H. Fritzsche)
Research Physicist -Exxon Corporate Research (1981-1986)
Physics Faculty -Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1986-present)

Research interests and expertise:

o Optoelectronic and structural properties of amorphous, nanocrystalline, and quantum dot materials

o Optoelectronic devices and solar cells

o Physics Educational Development

o I-PERSIST First Semester Mentoring Program

o Physics Summer BRIDGE Program

o Remote Access Laboratory Experiments - Real-time access to introductory Physics experiments

Selected Publications: (for a full publication list click here)

Amorphous semiconductors, Semiconductor quantum dots, and nanostructures

H. Fritzsche, C.C. Tsai and P. Persans, “Amorphous Semiconducting Silicon‑Hydride Alloys", Solid State Technology 21, 55 (1978).
P. Persans, "Dual Beam Photoconductivity Modulation Spectroscopy in a‑Si:H", Philosophical Magazine B46, 435‑471 (1982).
T. Tiedje, B. Abeles, P. Persans, G. Cody and B. Brooks, "Bandgap and Resistivity of Amorphous Semiconductor Superlattices”, J. Non‑Cryst. Solids 66, 345 (1984).
P. Persans, A. Ruppert, S. Chan and G. Cody, "Relationship Between Bond Angle Disorder and the Optical Edge of a‑Ge:H", Solid State Commun. 51, 203 (1984).
P. Persans, A.F. Ruppert and B. Abeles, "Crystallization Kinetics of Amorphous Si/SiO₂Superlattice Structures", J. of Non‑Cryst. Solids 102, 130 (1988).
P.D. Persans, A. Tu, Y.J. Wu and M. Lewis, ”Size-distribution dependent optical properties of CdSSe nanocrystals”, J. Opt. Soc. Am. B, 6, 818 (1989)
P.D. Persans, E. Lu, A.F. Ruppert, G. Wagoner, and J. Haus, "Particle shape effects on optical absorption in semiconductor colloids," in Physical Phenomena in Granular Materials, eds. P. Sheng, G. Cody and T. Geballe, Mat. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 195 591 (1990)
A.Tu and P. Persans, “Raman scattering as a probe of composition in II-VI ternary semiconductor-glass composites,” Appl. Phys. Lett., 58, 1506 (1991)
H Yükselici, P D Persans, T M Hayes, "Optical studies of the growth of Cd1-xZnxS nanocrystals in borosilicate glass", Phys Rev B, 52, 11763 (1995).

K L Stokes and P D Persans, "Excited states and size-dependent electro-optical properties of CdSSe quantum dots," Phys. Rev. B, 54, 1892 (1996).
J Schroeder and P D Persans, "Spectroscopy of II-VI nanocrystals at high pressure and high temperature" (A review article), J. Lumin., 70, 69-84, (1996).
P D Persans, P W Deelman, K L Stokes, L J Schowalter, A Byrne, T Thundat, "Optical studies of Ge islanding on Si(111)", Appl. Phys. Lett. 70, 472 (1997).
P D Persans and K L Stokes, "Embedded Nanocrystal Spectroscopy" in Handbook of Nanophase Materials ed. A. Goldstein, (Marcel Dekker, New York), 1997.
G Wagoner, E Van Wagenen, G Korenowski, P D Persans, "Second harmonic generation in MoS2", J. Opt. Soc. Am. B, 15, 1017, (1998).
P D Persans, L B Lurio, J Pant, H Yükselici, G D Lian, and T M Hayes, "Combining x-ray and optical spectroscopies in the study of dilute semiconductor nanoparticle composites," J Appl Phys 87 3850 (2000)
P D Persans, L B Lurio, J Pant, G D Lian, T M Hayes, "Zn incorporation in CdS nanoparticles in glass," Phys Rev B 63 115320 (2001)
A. Filin, K. Babocsi, M. Schmitt, P. D. Persans, V. D. Kulakovskii, and W. Kiefer, “Exciton spin dephasing in CdSe nanocrystals embedded in glass”, Phys Rev B 73 125322 (2006).

Thin Films, and Interfaces

P. Persans, A.F. Ruppert, B. Abeles and T. Tiedje, "Raman Scattering Study of Amorphous Si‑Ge Interfaces", Phys. Rev. B32, 5558 (1985).
B. Abeles, P. Persans, L. Yang, H. Stasiewski and W. Lanford, "Infrared Spectroscopy of Interfaces in Amorphous Hydrogenated Silicon/Silicon Nitride Superlattices", Appl. Phys. Lett. 48, 168 (1986).
P.D. Persans, "Vibrational Raman Studies of Amorphous Solid Interfaces," Phys. Rev. B 39 1797 (1989)
P.D. Persans, A. Ruppert, Y.-J. Wu, B. Abeles, W. Lanford and V. Pantojas, "Stability of Tetrahedrally-Bonded Amorphous Semiconductor Multilayers," J. Non-Cryst. Sol. 114 771 (1989).
G. Dalakos, J. Plawsky, and P. D. Persans, "Topographic evolution during deposition of plasma-deposited hydrogenated silicon on glass", Phys Rev B 72 205305 (2005).

George T. Dalakos, Joel L. Plawsky, Peter D. Persans, "Suppressed surface morphology instabilities in amorphous hydrogenated silicon deposition", Appl. Phys. Lett. 85 3462 (2004).

G. Dalakos et al., "Surface roughness and structural aspects of anodic and cathodic plasma deposited a-Si:H at low-temperature" J. Non-Cryst. Sol.,349 285 (2004).
GT Dalakos, JL Plawsky, PD Persans, "Smoothing of rough a-Si : H surfaces by ion-assisted deposition and sputter erosion" , Materials Letters 60 15-18 (2006)

A. Jain, J. L. Plawsky, S. Ponoth, S. Rogojevic, N. Agarwal, W.N. Gill, P. Persans, "Porous Materials as Low-k Dielectrics for Electronic and Optical Interconnects", Thin Solid Films 398, 513 (2001).
N. Agarwal, S. Ponoth, J. Plawsky, P. D. Persans, “Roughness evolution in polyimide films due to plasma etching”, Appl. Phys. Lett. 78, 2294 (2001).
S. Ponoth, N. Agarwal, P. Persans, and J. Plawsky, “PECVD Silicon Oxide-Aerogel and Polymer-Aerogel Optical Waveguides”, in Microphotonics – Materials, Physics and Applications, (Materials Research Society Proceedings Vol. 637, 2001).
N. Agarwal, Ponoth, S; Plawsky, J; Persans, PD , “Optimized oxygen plasma etching of polyimide films for low loss optical waveguides”, J Vac Sci and Tech A, Vol. 20, 1587, (2002).
P. D. Persans, N. Agarwal, S. Ponoth, J. Plawsky, “High-k Dielectrics: Waveguide and packaging applications”, in “Interlayer Dielectrics for Semiconductor Technologies”, ed. Shyam P. Murarka, Moshe Eizenberg, and Ashok K. Sinha, (Academic Press, San Diego))
B. N. Tran, J. C. Joseph, J. P. Ferris, P. D. Persans, “Simulation of Titan Haze Formation using a Photochemical Flow Reactor: Optical Constants of the Polymer”, Icarus 165, 379 (2003).
Ponoth, S.S.; Agarwal, N.T.; Persans, P.D.; Plawsky, J.L., "Fabrication of micromirrors with self-aligned metallization using silicon back-end-of-the-line processes", Thin Solid Films, 472, 169-79 (2005).
R. Castelli, P.D. Persans, W. Strohmayer, V. Parkinson, "Optical Reflection Spectroscopy of Thick Corrosion Layers on 304 Stainless Steel ", Corrosion Science, 49, 4396-4414 (2007).
"Light Emitting Diode Development on Polar and Non-Polar GaN Substrates," C. Wetzel, M. Zhu, J. Senawiratne, T. Detchprohm, P.D. Persans, L. Liu, E. A. Preble, and D. Hanser, J. Cryst. Growth 310, 3987-91 (2008)
“Determination of the Complex Refractive Indices of Titan Haze Analogs using Photothermal Deflection Spectroscopy”, Véronique Vuitton, Buu N. Tran, Peter D. Persans and James P. Ferris^,Icarus (2009)
AJ Said, D Recht, JT Sullivan, J. Warrender, T Buonassisi, PD Persans, M Aziz, Extended infrared photoresponse and gain in chalcogen-supersaturated silicon photodiodes, Appl Phys Lett, 99, 073503, (2011).
Daniel Recht, David Hutchinson, Thomas Cruson, Anthony DiFranzo, Andrew McAllister, Aurore J. Said, Jeffrey M. Warrender, Peter D. Persans, and Michael J. Aziz, Contactless microwave measurements of photoconductivity in silicon hyperdoped with chalcogens, Applied Physics Express 5 (2012) 041301
Photocarrier lifetime and transport in silicon supersaturated with sulfur, Persans, Peter D.; Berry, Nathaniel E.; Recht, Daniel; et al., APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS (2014) Volume: 101 Issue: 11 Article Number: 111105 DOI: 10.1063/1.4746752
Room-temperature sub-band gap optoelectronic response of hyperdoped silicon, Mailoa, Jonathan P.; Akey, Austin J.; Simmons, Christie B.; Hutchinson, D; Mathews, J; Sullivan, JT; Recht, D;Winkler, MT; Williams, JS; Warrender, JM; Persans, PD; Aziz, MJ; Buonassisi, T, NATURE COMMUNICATIONS (2015) Volume: 5 Article Number: 3011