Vladimir Litvinov is a principal scientist at Sierra Nevada Corporation, Irvine, CA, USA. He earned his MSc in radiophysics from Ivan Franko University, Lviv, Ukraine; PhD in physics and mathematics from Chernivtsy University, Ukraine; and Habilitation in physics and mathematics from the Institute of Physics, Estonian Academy of Science, Tartu, Estonia. He was a member and then a head of the theoretical lab at the Institute of Material Science Problems, Academy of Science of Ukraine, from 1978 to 1996. He started working at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA, in 1996 as a senior research associate. He joined Sierra Nevada Corp. in 1999. He has also served as a principal investigator on projects supported by the U.S. Air Force, Army, and Navy as well as SOCOM, NASA, and MDA. He is a member of IEEE, American Physical Society, and Material Research Society. His research interests include the theory and modeling in semiconductor physics, III–V and IV–VI semiconductor optoelectronic devices, superlattices, metallic magnetic multilayers, and millimeter wave devices and scanning antennas.
“This book serves as a useful reference on the electronic structure and spontaneous and piezoelectric polarization of wurtzite-structure nitride semiconductors. Various chapters explain in detail how polarization fields and the Rashba effect combine to turn these materials into promising materials for spintronics as well as topological insulators. The concepts are illustrated with many applications. Overall, this work will serve as a valuable resource for students and practitioners alike.” Prof. Chris G. Van de Walle, University of California, USA “This book comes at a very good time, just as the scientific community is ready to explore new materials in search of room-temperature ferromagnetism in semiconductors. In his excellent book, Vladimir Litvinov provides a comprehensive arsenal of theoretical tools needed for tackling this challenge. His treatment of various exchange interactions and spin-orbit effects in semiconductors is handled masterfully, laying the ground for the exploration of spintronic effects in materials of current interest, which range from wide-gap semiconductors to topological insulators. An excellent reference for students and scientists working in this area.” Prof. Jacek K. Furdyna, University of Notre Dame, USA