Dr Lischener studies the physical and chemical properties of materials using theoretical modelling approaches. Currently, much of his work is focussed on materials for a sustainable energy technology. For example, he investigate the potential of metallic nanoparticles and organic polymers for solar cells applications and search for photocatalysts that can store the sun's energy in the form of chemical fuels. Another research area he works on are nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes or graphene. To learn about the properties of these materials, he employs a variety of modelling techniques ranging from quantum-mechanical approaches, such as many-body perturbation theory (GW/BSE method) or density-functional theory, to classical force fields and elastic continuum models