For completeness - 3 things influence DoF for a given camera: Aperture, Distance to subject and focal length.
The larger the aperture (lower number) the shallower the DoF
The shorter the distance to the subject the shallower the DoF
The longer the focal length the shallower the DoF
As said, this is a fixed focal length prime lens. Primes generally can offer sharper results as the optics are simpler and optimised for that focal length. The lens in this case is the new AF-S version with quiet, fast AF in lens too, so happy on D40, D60 etc bodies without built in AF motors. It also has nice bokeh and handles specular highlights better than the older f/1.8 AF-D
Great for low light and shallow DoF work.