Supervisors: Jasmin Fisher, Ina Flaucher and Peter Schall
The solar spectrum contains many frequencies of light, yet photosynthetic organisms only absorb some of them. To match the spectra, we develop highly efficient light-converting nanomaterials and integrate them into foils to “shape” sunlight into an optimum spectrum for the photosynthetic species at hand. The light tuning allows exploring the functionality of light on biomass yield, nutritional value, and plant shape. This project can take multiple directions; firstly, in collaboration with the Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED) at UVA, you can test the effect of light conversion on the growth of microalgae, optimising the light spectrum and geometry of the application. Secondly, you can also focus on the physics behind the light conversion and outcoupling of the foils, by both simulating and testing “metasurface” structures to enhance directional quantum yield. As this overall project is multifaceted, we are happy to discuss possible directions, so please get in touch if you’re interested!
Fluorescent nanocrystal layer that converts harmful UV light into yellow-red light that plants can use efficiently for photosynthesis.