Monday, January 13, 2003Volume 3, Issue 1
Director's Message
Happy 2003! I thought it would be useful to kick-off the New Year with a brief reminder about the mission and scope of MRI.
- The Materials Research Institute (MRI) is dedicated to the University-wide materials community at Penn State. Its mission is:
- to improve the local, national and international visibility of Materials at Penn State,
- to provide support and services for a broad spectrum of intercollege activities in materials education and research, and
- to strategically position Penn State to make important and significant advances in materials science, materials engineering, and their technological applications for computers, energy, manufacturing, medicine, national security, telecommunications and transportation.
- The University-wide materials community at Penn State is a large enterprise that is made up of various sub-units; in general, these fall into three broad categories. MRI markets and represents the best interests of all.
- Academic Departments - disciplinary science and engineering departments with faculty who perform materials research.
- Research Centers - interdisciplinary teams of faculty and staff focused on specific research topics with a common source of industry and/or government funding.
- Facilities - large scale analytical, computing or processing facilities with permanent staff present to service the needs of users.
- Any faculty member with an interest in materials, materials education or interdisciplinary research is eligible to be MRI Faculty, and will be included in the MRI Directory and on the MRI Web Site (with direct links to your own personal site); MRI will help market you and your research. MRI Faculty will also be included on mailing lists to receive information about MRI initiatives, multi-investigator proposal activities, eMaterials @ Penn State, special events and seminars, and occasional MRI Faculty Meetings; i.e., you will know what is going on in Materials at Penn State. Most importantly, MRI Faculty are eligible to request MRI seed grants, equipment matching, other relevant support (and perhaps in the future, space). The expectations are that you will contribute towards the goals of the MRI and will be an advocate for Materials at Penn State; of course, there will be differing degrees and mechanisms of interaction from one faculty to another. The fact that some faculty are co-funded by MRI does not add any special privileges or expectations; co-funding is a strategic partnership between MRI and Departments/Colleges to add faculty in specific areas that will foster interdisciplinary materials research.
- MRI Faculty are encouraged, but not required, to add 'Materials Research Institute' as an additional by-line (after your academic affiliation) to publications, presentations and proposals. This will enhance the external visibility of Materials at Penn State, and in turn, should favorably impact rankings and proposal reviews. For Materials at Penn State, the sum is greater than the parts, and by joining together, we can all take credit for (and advantage of) the bottom line!
- If you would like to add Materials Research Institute and the MRI logo to your business card, contact April Benson; MRI will cover the cost.
Have a great year!
Carlo Pantano
MRI Faculty Spotlight
Associate Professor Srinivas Tadigadapa (Electrical Engineering) arrived at Penn State a little over two years ago, but has rapidly made connections with faculty all over campus. One of the reasons he cites for coming to Penn State was the large number of faculty involved in materials. Virtually all of his research involves microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). His specific expertise is in the design and fabrication of MEMS and thus views faculty that are working with exciting new materials as potential collaborators.
For the full story go to:
http://www.mri.psu.edu/articles/SrinivasTadigadapa/
MRI Board Meeting Report - November 14, 2002
Review of the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering
Carlo reported on the November Applied Research Laboratory Advisory Board Meeting. ARL is focused on increasing the collaboration with materials and other research activities on campus to provide a broader menu of research capabilities for DOD. Likewise, materials faculty can enhance their own research profiles by partnering with ARL researchers who are in touch with ONR's new research procurement system. A new ARL Deputy Director will be appointed to be responsible for coordinating campus wide research linkages in the future. MRI is already working more closely with ARL through the Electro Optics Center; Joe Dougherty now works with the Electro-Optics Center (EOC) specifically to identify new opportunities for such collaborations as well as to work on materials for electro-optical and related technologies.
The planning for a new MRI Building is progressing. The building is on next year's proposed capital budget (in Harrisburg), and if approved, groundbreaking would be in 2007. There is already money in the 04 budget for architectural design and engineering of the building. The housing of multi-user facilities is one intent of the building. Another is to maintain some "agile" space for multi-investigator, interdisciplinary projects that would turn over based on their funding, and thereby be available for new initiatives. The resident faculty occupants would be those who routinely use the multi-user facilities and/or interact with one another, or others on campus, in multi-investigator, interdisciplinary programs. None of the space in the new building will be assigned to Colleges or Departments.
Review of Mechanical/Nuclear Engineering
Richard Benson, Department Head for Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering reviewed the Departmental activities with particular emphasis on Materials related faculty and programs. Penn State's Nuclear program is now the largest in the country because the dual major has attracted many students. Moreover, while many other universities have shut down their reactors, PSU's was maintained. Recently, they received $2 million dollars to refurbish the reactor because of increased demand.
The department hired 5 faculty last year, compared to one or two in a more typical year. One was co-funded by MRI, and two of the others have a heavy materials emphasis. The department will be emphasizing materials in its pending new faculty hires also. MNE differentiates itself from ESM by doing more thermal and fluid flow related engineering while ESM is more dominant in solid mechanics. Below is a summary of materials related faculty and research in MNE.
Nuclear Engineering
- Neutron radiography - Jack Brenizer, Kenan •nl•, John Cimbala, Matt Mench*
- Material property measurements using nuclear techniques - Arthur Motta, Gary Catchen
- Radiation damage - Arthur Motta
Mechanical Engineering
- Functionally graded materials, Anil Kulkarni
- Heat and mass transfer in nanoparticle synthesis - Anil Kulkarni
- Laser/material interactions - Michael Modest, Stephen Copley, Gary Settles
- Fuel cells - Chao-Yang Wang, Matt Mench, Stefan Thynell
- Thermopile sensors - Matt Mench
- Combustion products - Bob Santoro, Dom Santavicca, Richard Yetter, Tom Litzinger
- Microfluidics - Kendra Sharp, Rich Yetter, Gary Settles
- Welding - Pan Michaleris
- Smart and small surgical instruments - Mary Frecker
- Miniaturized power supplies - Richard Yetter, Chao-Yang Wang
- Miniaturized actuators - Gary Koopmann, Mary Frecker, Eric Mockensturm
- Elastomer/nanotube composites for damping - Kon-Well Wang
- Mechanical measurements at micron scales - Aman Haque
- Microtribology and machined surfaces - Liming Chang, Eric Marsh
Industry Collaborations
Many faculty are interested in how we can better engage industry with respect to more traditional materials research especially considering the current emphasis on nano technologies. Industry often wants to know how we can help with today's materials manufacturing and structural materials. How can faculty who work in these areas better engage industry on these topics when our focus appears to be nano? The group agreed that government resources are more focused on nano, and that faculty prefer government awards which do not have the accountability and publishing limitations that is often inherent in company research projects. The group also agreed that champions, of the sort who have lead our MRSEC, NIRT, MURI, NSEC and ERC proposals are needed in these traditional areas.
Faculty Co-Funding
Carlo discussed MRI's co-funding policy which does not prohibit existing faculty from being co-funded, although the priority placed on all consortia funds is to increase the total number of faculty in the strategic areas. He indicated that department heads recommending existing faculty for co-funding would need to show how these faculty would enhance interdisciplinarity by leading new initiatives and getting the external funding to support them. In this context, MRI and its executive committee of Deans would certainly support such requests to co-fund existing faculty.
Nanofabrication Update
The Nanofabrication Facilities Users Advisory Committee has implemented a user fee ceiling for heavy users, who will not be charged more than $1400 per month.
Contracts & Grants
Materials research accounted for more than $2 million in contracts and grants for the month of December! The largest of these contracts and grants (those greater than $100K) are listed below, along with a link to the complete list of contracts and grants. These data are provided by OSPs Strategic Information Management System.
Castleman, JR, Albert W; Cluster Dynamics: Foundations for Developing Nanoscale Materials, U.S. Department of the Air Force
Eklund, Peter C; High Efficiency Nanowire Photocathode, Industry
Garrison, Barbara J; Molecule Liftoff from Surfaces, National Science Foundation
German, Randall M; Binet, Chantal; An Innovative Knowledge System for Rapid Expansion of Net Shape Manufacturing Industry via Powder Metal Injection Molding, Industry
Kuo, Kenneth K; Yetter, Richard A; Effect of Energetic Nano-Sized Particles on the Performance of Gun Propellants, U.S. Department of the Army
Logan, Bruce E; Application of bioreactor systems to low-concentration perchlorate-contaminated water, American Water Works Association Research Foundation
Rose, Joseph L; High Frequency Guided Wave Phased Array Focusing in Pipe, U.S. Department of the Navy
Sen, Ayusman; Transition Metal Mediated Transformations of Small Molecules, U.S. Department of Energy
New Center for Nanoscale Science Established at Penn State
Significant support from the National Science Foundation (NSF), combined with matching funds from Penn State University and the state of Pennsylvania plus a wealth of faculty expertise, has led to the creation of an interdisciplinary research center at Penn State called the Center for Nanoscale Science. NSF support for the center totals $9 million over the next six years, and matching monies greatly increase the funding total.
"It's a big addition to our programs, and a testament to the cooperation among faculty members and researchers at Penn State that NSF decided to fund this center," said Moses Chan, Evan Pugh Professor of Physics at Penn State and director of the new center. According to the NSF, the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) program that funded the center allows scientists to "undertake materials research of scope and complexity that would not be feasible under traditional funding of individual research projects."
For the full story go to:
http://www.science.psu.edu/alert/Chan10-2002.htm
Academic Freedom and Homeland Security
Security analysts and policy makers have been concerned with information published in the open scientific literature since WWII and the Cold War. Recently the focus has shifted towards information and research in the biosciences because of the dramatic advances and potential application of this information to bioterrorism. The likelihood of government-imposed restraints on the dissemination of scientific information is of great concern to the academic research community and has become a delicate subject between national security officials and the academic community.
Some arguments for and against restricting publication of "sensitive" research were outlined at a recent conference hosted by the Monterey Institute's Center for Nonproliferation Studies.
Arguments for restricting publication include: scientific advances available in the open scientific literature could assist in the development of new types weapons used for bioterrorism. A report on the Workshop on Guidelines for the Publication of Scientific Research Potentially Related to Biological and Toxin Warfare is available at:
http://www.homelandsecurity.org/journal/
Those arguments against restricting publication include: restricting the publication of research contradicts the norms of the scientific community and impedes advances, restricting publication would discourage long-term efforts in areas that could be open to censorship, and controls on scientific knowledge could create an artificial sense of security and delay research needed to develop countermeasures.
At the recent Federal Biodefense Research FY 2003 Conference, Ronald Atlas, President of the American Society for Microbiology, addressed some of the concerns of the academic community especially in microbiology. For instance, he said it is only legal to possess certain agents or pathogens for "bona fide" research (per USA Patriot Act). This may lead to two questions: (1) what constitutes "bona fide" research and (2) does research that one plans for the future constitute "bona fide" research or justify keeping restricted pathogens in a lab freezer?
Another major concern is nothing clearly defines "sensitive information" in the life sciences, Atlas said. Many controversial papers that have been published could be construed as providing dangerous information, he said. However, the free flow of information is important in the academic community, especially across national boundaries, as international collaborations and partnerships are sought.
Atlas provided additional questions that strike at the center of this debate:
- Should scientists be constrained regarding which questions they can ask?
- Should journals reject papers containing potentially sensitive information?
- Should secrecy clearances be required for attendees at biodefense research meetings?
- Should there be mandatory government review before publishing information, even from unclassified studies and those not funded by government?
- And, perhaps the most difficult questions of all, exactly what is sensitive information, and who is empowered to decide what is potentially dangerous?
Atlas urged the scientific community to come together to establish the norms, standards and a framework to ensure that critical information is withheld from terrorists while continuing the advancement of biomedical research. This cannot be done alone and a dialogue must be established with the national security community.
Materials Seminars
As it is shortly into the new semester, there are no materials seminars listed for the next two weeks. However, we invite you to regularly check the seminars page of the MRI website to view updates as seminar announcements are made.
Funding Opportunities
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN) NSF: letters of intent due April 7, 2003
DOE: Development of Novel Sensors for Ultra High Temperature Fossil Fuel Applications
Development of Advanced Biomaterials NIH: Deadline March 27, 2003
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology in Biology and Medicine NIH: Deadline February 18, 2003
NSF: Sensors and Sensor Networks
