Peter A. Dowben

Biographical Summary

2002 - present: Charles Bessey Professor, University of Nebraska
1995 - present: Professor of Physics and Graduate Fellow, University of Nebraska
1994 - present: Research Professor of Chemistry, University of Nebraska
1993 - 1995: Associate Prof. of Physics and Graduate Fellow, University of Nebraska
1990 - 1993: Associate Prof. of Physics, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York
1987 - 1996: Adjunct Prof. of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York
1986 - 1993: Member of Solid State Science and Technology Program, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York
1984 - 1990: Assistant Prof. of Physics, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York
1981 - 1983: Scientist with the Fritz-Haber Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, FRG
1981 - Visiting Scientist to the Department of Physics, University Osnabrueck, FRG
1980 - 1981: Research Assistant to Dr. M. Grunze, Fritz-Haber Institut der Max-Planck Gesellschaft, and the Free University, Berlin, FRG
1981 - Ph.D. in Physics, University of Cambridge

Interests and Capabilities

The major focus of the Dowben group emphasizes the changes in electronic (band) structure across electronic phase transitions in reduced dimensionality. Of interest are ferromagnetism in local moment systems or spatially restricted systems, ferroelectricity, multiferroic behavior and the nonmetal to metal transition.

Specific techniques include angle-resolved photoemission, resonant photoemission, inverse photoemission and spin polarized inverse photoemission. Other techniques include spin polarized photoemission, characteristic energy loss, low energy electron diffraction, angle resolved thermal desorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoemission, and magneto-optic Kerr effect.

Research Projects

1. Organic and organometallic materials in ultrahigh vacuum molecular multiferroics
2. Orientation, bonding and electronic structure of organic overlayers, organometallic molecular overlayers and molecular magnets.
3. The temperature dependent electronic structure of ferroelectric crystalline molecular films, as a function of metallicity.
4. The spin polarized occupied and unoccupied band structure of local moment ferromagnetic systems as a function of temperature.

Funded by the NSF, NSF Polarization and Spin Phenomena MRSEC (DMR-1420645), through the Semiconductor Research Corporation, the SRC-nCORE initiative.

Research