Personale docente

prof. Pier Paolo Lottici

Full Professor in Physics (FIS/01-Experimental Physics) from 2001 at the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences of Parma University and from 2013 in Applied Physics (FIS07).

TEACHING

He is teaching Fundamental Physics in different Courses of the Science Faculty of the Parma University, Physical Techniques for Archaeometry and Materials and Methods for Cultural Heritage studies and conservation at the DUSIC Department. In the past he was charged of several Courses, as General Physics, Introduction to Photonics, Introduction to Physics of Matter, Physics of Materials for Photonics, Foundations of spectroscopic techniques applied to Cultural Heritage.

He has been supervisor of many Theses on various topics of Solid State Physics and Optics, and recently on various applications of spectroscopic techniques to Cultural Heritage. Some examples are: diffraction from 3-D gratings and self-diffraction in phase and amplitude nonlinear materials, electro-optics effects investigation, EXAFS structural study of glasses for nonlinear optics, preparation and characterization of amorphous titania by sol-gel, study of local structure in oxides obtained by sol-gel, growth and characterization of GaN by MOVPE, photoinduced birefringence in sol-gel doped materials, study of pigments in frescoes, study of inks for forensic analysis, polarization holographic gratings, phototorefractive gratings in hybrid materials, oxides for electrochromic devices and catalysis, Microwave techniques for disinfestation of works of art, characterization of doped materials for laser emission, polariscopy techniques for the study of photoinduced effects, study of stones with water treatment with silica and titania nanoparticles, degradation processes in metals, etc.

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

He has been head of the Laboratory of micro-Raman, FTIR and EXAFS spectroscopies and optical techniques at the Department of Physics, University of Parma.

He is author of more than 260 scientific publications, including papers on peer reviewed journals, contributions to several volumes and to Proceedings of International Conferences.

The scientific activity focused on issues of theoretical and experimental structural analysis, dynamics and vibrational characterization with various experimental techniques (mainly Raman and micro-Raman spectroscopy and X-ray absorption (XANES and EXAFS) spectroscopy, but also optical IR, vis, UV, nonlinear optics techniques) in crystalline systems, semiconductors and insulators, minerals, glassy systems or nano-structured hybrid organic-inorganic mainly of interest for optical applications and optoelectronics.
Main topics of interest have been:
EXAFS and XANES spectroscopy in glassy oxides for optoelectronics, micro Raman and IR spectroscopies in compound semiconductors, thin films and glasses; organic and hybrid organic-inorganic system for optics; quantum confinement effects on phonons; techniques for measuring linear and nonlinear optical constants; characterization of electrochromic materials; photoinduced birefringence effects in hybrid materials; Surface-enhanced Raman Scattering. Spectroscopic and structural investigation techniques are currently applied to cultural heritage materials (degradation processes, nanocrystalline materials for stone and glass conservation, photocatalytic self cleaning), mineralogy (Raman in garnets and piroxenes, study of fluid inclusions) and forensic science.
He is collaborating with various groups in national and international research projects on materials for optoelectronics or mineralogical and on microspectroscopic investigation on materials of interest for cultural heritage.
He headed in 2004-6 a PRIN research unit for the study of hybrid materials for packaging and in 2009-2012 he headed a UE/Foncicyt (Mexico) project on nanocrystalline sol-gel material for drug-delivery applications
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INSTITUTIONAL ACTIVITIES

He has been involved as Delegate for the Rector in several institutional activities dealing with University Libraries and Museums from 2000 to 2014.
He has been Scientific Coordinator of the Doctoral School of Physics in the years 2010-2014. Now he is memberof the Scientific Council for the Science and Technology Doctorate.
He has been or is involved in many groups for the monitoring of the Course of Science for Nature and Environment, where he is teaching Physics.