New NSF Centers Impact Nanomateials
and Environmental Coatings Technology

October 15, 2002

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has established three new Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSECs) at the University of Nebraska, Pennsylvania State University, and the University of Southern Mississippi, with an NSF investment of up to $22 million over six years. The centers will also receive substantial support from the participating academic institutions, state governments, and industry.

The Center for Quantum and Spin Phenomena in Nanomagnetic Structures at the University of Nebraska, in partnership with other universities, National laboratories and industry, will carry out fundamental studies of ultra-small magnetic systems with potential future applications in advanced communications systems. The Center for Nanoscale Science at Pennsylvania State University will advance the state-of-the-art lithography to create new nano-mechanical and nano-electronic devices and investigate the properties of confined structures in the nanometer sized regime.

The new Response-driven Polymeric Films Center at the University of Southern Mississippi will investigate the formation and growth of polymer films and coatings with potential applications in biological interfaces, water treatment, enhanced oil recovery, and water-borne coatings.

Each award is initially for six years; renewed NSF support is possible through competitive review in the sixth year of the award. In addition to the three new centers, another ten existing MRSECs successfully renewed support in open competition in FY 2002. A total of 29 Centers are currently supported by the MRSEC program with annual NSF support of $51 million. Centers are reaching out beyond the research laboratories to make a difference in the education opportunities of undergraduates, K-12 teachers and students, and the general public. "The MRSECs are at the forefront of combining interdisciplinary, collaborative research with effective teaching and education of the wider community", said W. Lance Haworth, Executive Officer of the Division of Materials Research which supports the MRSEC program.

NEW NSF MATERIALS RESEARCH SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CENTERS

Center for Quantum and Spin Phenomena in Nanomagnetic Structures
$5.4M / 6 yrs
University of Nebraska
Director: David Sellmyer

This new MRSEC at the University of Nebraska supports an interdisciplinary research program on nanomagnetism with emphasis on the study of interactions between magnetic particles or grains in nanostructures and spin transport across nanocontacts and interfaces. The Center's research is aided by extensive collaborations with other universities, government and industrial laboratories. The Center's education outreach efforts include research experiences for teachers and for faculty-student teams from predominantly undergraduate institutions.

A new MRSEC at Pennsylvania State University supports research in molecular nanofabrication and biological and synthetic molecular motors. The new activities have been merged with the existing MRSEC on porous media, which was initiated in FY 2000. The new Center will partner with the Penn State node of the National Nanofabrication Users Network to create a national resource in the extension of nanolithography in the areas of chemical self-assembly. The Center has education activities ranging from the graduate level to K-12 teachers and students and is planning education programs for the public with the Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia and the Exploratorium in San Francisco.

The new MRSEC at the University of Southern Mississippi supports an interdisciplinary research program in the area of polymer coatings and films. Potential application of the Center's research are in diverse areas such as water treatment, controlled drug release, and formulation of water-based coatings. The Center also supports a wide range of education activities, including the establishment of advanced degrees in polymer education and a new course leading to an advanced degree in Distance Learning. The Center supports well-maintained and accessible shared experimental facilities and interacts with industry and other sectors at local, regional, national and international levels.

SUCCESSFUL RECOMPETING CENTERS MRSEC FY 2002 COMPETITION

The Center investigates new materials with potential applications in information technology such as dendrimer-based materials, as well as magnetic films and nanoparticles that may serve as future extremely high density magnetic recording media. The MRSEC supports development of instructional materials for middle school students by teachers and MRSEC faculty, a summer research experience for teachers and undergraduates, and a summer research program for faculty and students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The Center serves as a resource for the information storage industry.

The MRSEC at the University of Chicago focuses on the manipulation of structural and dynamic properties of materials connected through hierarchies of length scales. Potential applications include the design of the next generation of functional materials, from cooperative spin systems and self-assembled nanostructures to bio-inorganic hybrid materials and biochips. The Center has a strong education outreach program at the K-12 level that emphasizes attracting and keeping women and minorities in science, and supports public science education through links to a local museum.

The Center focuses on basic liquid crystal and soft materials science that may result in enhanced capabilities for electro-optic, nonlinear optic, chemical and other applications. Strong collaborations exist with the rapidly developing US ferrroelectric liquid crystal display industry. The center operates a vigorous education outreach program featuring science shows for the K-12 audience and is developing "Materials Science from CU", a program of classes teaching physical science in K-12 schools throughout the state of Colorado.

The MRSEC investigates ways of forming films containing complex metal oxide nanoparticles and the properties of these films through an interdisciplinary and collaborative effort. The Center has extensive links to City College of New York and collaborators in industry and at national laboratories. Education and outreach efforts of the MRSEC include a summer research experience for undergraduates and for high school teachers, and an extensive visitation program to high and middle schools in New York City that brings materials demonstrations to teachers and students.

This MRSEC supports a broad interdisciplinary research program that investigates the mechanical properties of thin films at scales intermediate between atomistic and continuum, focuses on understanding the mechanical properties of the cell and its structural components, and explores innovative ways of self-assembly of soft materials. The MRSEC operates a broad education and outreach research program that includes summer research experiences for undergraduates and teachers, activities for K-12 students, and a new program to enhance the participation of members of underrepresented groups in science and engineering at the graduate and postgraduate level.

The MRSEC supports a broad interdisciplinary program in the area of polymer science and engineering. The Center has strong ties to industry through its industrial affiliates program and maintains effective education and outreach programs with emphasis on undergraduate and K-12 teacher education and strong links to near-by women's colleges.

Research in the Center is organized into three research groups on microstructured polymers, crystalline organic semiconductors, and magnetic heterostructures. The Center benefits from extensive materials synthesis and characterization facilities and supports a strong education outreach program to four-year colleges with emphasis on the Native American community in the region.

The MRSEC supports a broad-based interdisciplinary research program with emphasis on micro- and nanostructured materials in the areas of photonics, polymer assemblies, as well as semiconductor and magnetic structures. The Center also investigates the science and engineering of solid-state portable power sources with the potential application of developing high performance batteries. The Center has a strong education program directed toward graduate students, undergraduates, middle and high school students and K-12 teachers. Emphasis is placed on including underrepresented minorities in these programs. The Center operates widely accessible shared facilities and has an effective industrial outreach program.

The MRSEC supports a research program in the area of complex materials, including polymers and soft materials, electronic materials, and biomaterials. The wide range of education activities include science curriculum support for middle and high school teachers, a summer outreach program for high school students, and an African outreach program. The Center supports well-maintained and accessible shared experimental facilities and interacts with industry and other sectors at local, regional, national and international levels.

The Center is a partnership between Stanford University, UC Davis, UC Berkeley and the IBM Almaden Research Laboratory. Research, with strong international collaborations, is focused in the areas of nanostructured and interfacial molecular and biomolecular materials with potential applications in nanotemplating, photovoltaics, catalysis, and artificial membranes. The Center supports undergraduate summer research activities in academic and industrial settings as well as in science museum projects with plans to increase the participation of physically disabled students. The K-12 programs for teachers and students include partnerships with area schools.