Dr. Marc Dvorak awarded an Academy of Finland post-doc fellowship

Project description:

Understanding the optical and electronic properties of materials is the foundation of many technological devices, including computers, solar cells, and lasers. To continue to improve the performance of these devices into the 21st century, new materials are needed. Computational screening of new materials is a powerful approach to speed-up the discovery of new technological materials. Researchers are increasingly exploring materials with strongly interacting electrons. However, current theories are not accurate enough for reliable prediction of electronic and optical properties of such 'strongly correlated' materials. We are developing a new theoretical and computational method to understand and predict the optoelectronic properties of materials. Our approach could have a high impact in designing more efficient solar cells, boosting the clean energy industry, and lessening the world's need for fossil fuels.