November 6-7, 2012 International Business Center, 9 th floor

The main goal of this meeting is to bring together various ideas and problems from the area which is called physics of low-dimensional materials. Low-dimensional materials are the class of materials whose structural units are different low-dimensional nanoscale systems such as quantum dots, quantum fractal networks, nanotubes, fullerenes, graphene etc. Because of the quantum confinement effects the physical properties of such systems are completely different than those of bulk systems. Such materials are becoming firm ground for the development of the rapidly developing area, nanotechnology. Due to the unusual properties of low dimensional materials their potential for to be used in energy- and resource saving technologies is tremendously high. Among most unusual low-dimensional materials two-dimensional crystal, so-called graphene has attracted much interest of physicists and engineers from different practical viewpoints. Probably this is the only materials having so many unusual physical properties. This materials is stronger than diamond, electrically and thermally more conductive than copper, optically transparent. A remarkable property of grapheme is the fact that bulk graphene sheet has electronic properties as those of metals, while grapheme nanoribbons become semiconductors. Straining of grapheme leads to appearing of string magnetic field and this fact allows currently to discuss prospects of so-called strain engineering of grapheme which implies using strained graphene in advanced electronic devices. Currently numerous practical applications of graphene in medicine, electronics, third generation solar cells, thermoelectricity, genetic analysis, construction materials, advanced optical devices etc. is extensively discussing in the literature. Special focus this material has attracted after awarding Nobel prize in Physics for 2010 to the study of graphene. This lead to exponential growth of the research papers on graphene. Currently it is expected that graphene based electronics will replace that on the basis of silicon materials. Another type of low-dimensional materials are so-called quantum networks, which can be considered as the basic units for many nanoscale network and discrete structures, such as polymer chains, microscopic electric circuits, mesoscopic waveguides, DNA double helix etc. Quantum dots are another kind of low-dimensional systems that are realized in laboratory conditions as the basic elements of many nanoscale devices. Nanoscale transistors, diodes, solar cells, thermo-elements and many other electronic devices can be constructed on the basis of quantum dots. Despite the great progress made in the study of low-dimensional materials their thermal, thermoelectric, mechanical, optical properties are still less-explored. Especially this concerns the role of vacuum effects such as Casimir effect, in low-dimensional systems and materials. Deep knowledge of such properties is the main factor for successful functionalization of these materials. Functionalization here implies constructing of advanced devices on the basis of low-dimensional materials. Materials potentially enabling to achieve such goals are called functional materials. The primary focus of the proposed meeting is to discuss of some less-explored and potentially advanced issues of the physics of low-dimensional functional materials. Talks and plenary discussions will be concentrated on the following topics:
- Quantum transport in nanoscale systems;
- Low-dimensional systems and materials;
- Nanomaterials for renewable and low-carbon energy;
- Polymer based nanodevices;
- Quantum Information.
Key note speakers and young researchers will discuss recent advances on the above issues and other relevant topics.