Native Defects, Impurities and the Electronic Structure of Compound Semiconductors: A Tribute to Dr. Wladyslaw Walukiewicz

Wladyslaw (Wladek) Walukiewicz (1946–2022) contributed to the field of semiconductor physics throughout his long scientific career, most of which took place at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. His research interests were wide-ranging but followed a common thread of understanding the relationships between defects, dopant impurities, the electronic structure of semiconductors, and their resulting optical and transport properties. Notable advances included elucidating the narrow bandgap electronic structure of InN, developing the band anticrossing model to understand the electronic structure of highly mismatched semiconductor alloys, establishing the Fermi stabilization energy concept and amphoteric defect model to explain doping limits in semiconductors, the behavior of ferromagnetic semiconductors, and the interplay of defects and electron transport. These contributions have paved the way for designing semiconductors for optoelectronic applications, including photovoltaics and water splitting. This special issue is intended to celebrate Dr. Walukiewicz’s career and highlight the ways these breakthroughs continue to impact semiconductor research that is done today.

Guest Editors: Kristin Alberi, Robert Kudrawiec, Yasushi Nanishi, and Junqiao Wu