Rate My Professor Rainer Timm

Rainer Timm is Professor and Manager in the Division of Synchrotron Radiation Research, Department of Physics, Lund University. He heads the division and coordinates the Lund Nano Characterization Labs. Timm is a member of the Strategic Research Area NanoLund: Centre for Nanoscience and participates in several LTH profile areas, including Nanoscience and Semiconductor Technology, Photon Science and Technology, Light and Materials, and The Energy Transition. He is also affiliated with Sentio: Integrated Sensors and Adaptive Technology for Sustainable Products and Manufacturing, and the Lund Laser Centre.

His research focuses on atomic-scale characterization of semiconductor nanostructures, encompassing atomic surface structure, local electronic properties, chemical and structural interface composition, and in-situ studies during device operation. Timm utilizes scanning probe techniques such as scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy (STM/S) and conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM) to examine nanowire surfaces, heterostructures, and device performance in tunnel diodes and solar cells. Complementarily, he applies X-ray-based spectroscopy and microscopy at synchrotron facilities like MAX IV, including X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy (XPS) in ultrahigh vacuum or near-ambient conditions, angular-resolved XPS (ARPES), hard X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy (HAXPES), and Photoemission Electron Microscopy (PEEM) for operando investigations. Key research areas include surface science of III-V semiconductor nanowires (InAs, GaAs, InP), atomic layer deposition of high-k oxides such as HfO₂, nanowire interfaces, ferroelectricity, and oxide growth. Representative publications are "Self-cleaning and surface chemical reactions during hafnium dioxide atomic layer deposition on indium arsenide" (Nature Communications, 2018), "Electronic and structural differences between wurtzite and zinc blende InAs nanowire surfaces: experiment and theory" (ACS Nano, 2014), "On the Edge: In situ Kelvin probe AFM on InP nanowire arrays" (Ultramicroscopy, 2026), and "Oxygen Vacancy Dynamics in Different Switching Modes of Hf0.5Zr0.5O2−δ" (ACS Nano, 2025). Timm received the Excellent Teaching Practitioner award in 2018 and has contributed to proposal review and programme committees, including the 63rd Electronic Materials Conference. He leads the LINXS theme on X-ray and neutron-based characterization of advanced semiconductors.