The Division of Materials Physics comprises six laboratories: the Laboratory for Materials for Energy Conversion and Sensors, the Laboratory for Molecular Physics and Synthesis of New Materials, the Laboratory for Optics and Optical Thin Films, the Laboratory for Semiconductors, the Laboratory for Thin Films, and the Laboratory for the Synthesis and Crystallography of Functional Materials.

Nanoscience and nanotechnology are among the most active areas of both fundamental scientific research and applied research and development within the Division of Materials Physics. Various types of nanostructured materials are synthesised, including amorphous and nanocrystalline thin films prepared using non-equilibrium thermodynamic processes, such as magnetron sputtering and ion implantation, nanolaminates, nanocrystalline metals, nanoscale ceramics, nanocomposites, and spatially ordered dispersions of nanoparticles in amorphous materials.

The structures of these materials are determined using a range of methods, including X-ray diffraction of polycrystalline and single-crystal samples, XRD, small-angle X-ray scattering, SAXS, Raman spectroscopy, electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, AFM. Their physical properties are investigated using numerous diagnostic methods, including electrical and optical measurements, photoluminescence, electrochemical measurements and others.

Establishing the relationships between preparation parameters, material structure and physical properties provides insight into the physical processes that give rise to new material properties and enables their optimisation for potential applications. Research activities will receive a significant boost with the installation of a new nanospectroscopy instrument. The materials under investigation demonstrate excellent properties for use in photovoltaics, thermoelectrics, catalysis, corrosion-resistant coatings and similar applications.

Fundamental research in molecular and solid-state physics, with an emphasis on vibrational spectroscopy, encompasses systems that differ in their preparation methods and composition. These include metals, semiconductors and ceramics, as well as molecular crystals and biological materials. Intensive research into optical interactions with matter in highly nonlinear regimes, together with spontaneous processes and self-organisation in condensed systems, completes the broad spectrum of research activities conducted within the Division of Materials Physics.