The mission of the department Application Science is the reliable evaluation and comparative benchmarking of innovative crystalline materials for future technology applications in electronics and photonics. The very aim is thus to move from an academic to a prototyping research level, namely establish stable process control to hand over reproducible and well-specified crystal systems to partners e.g. from technology institutes or industry companies. It is clear that such special effort can only be taken for selected materials with clearly identified technology potential.
The research is characterized by a high degree of interdisciplinarity to innovate technologies by crystalline materials. Besides close in-house interaction with corresponding IKZ growth departments – Nanostructures & Layers or Volume Crystals –, scientists intensively collaborate with external partners for technology development. Technology scouting and marketing to look for opportunities for IKZ materials are essential parts of success. Important figures of merit to evaluate the department´s performance are academic research results, education of skilled technical staff and scientists but also technology transfer to established companies or setting up start-ups.