Tonya Coffey - US grants

Technical

This proposal requests NSF support for acquisition of a research grade advanced atomic force microscopy (AFM) system and a portable AFM ideally suited for teaching, training, and outreach. This instrumentation will help to establish a state-of-the-art scanned probe microscopy (SPM) research and outreach program for the advancement of nanoscience and nanotechnology at Appalachian State University (ASU) in addition to providing the unique opportunity of training for undergraduate and graduate students interested in pursuing careers in science, technology, and engineering. Funding of this grant will encourage and promote a higher level of research in nanoscience at ASU and will be utilized to further projects which nclude nanotribology, plasmonic bio-sensing, beam induced chemistry, noble metal nanoparticle templating, molecular self- assembly, and renewable energy initiatives. ASU is shifting its priorities to increase efforts on research in response to the needs of our state while maintaining and enhancing our traditional strengths in science education. In order to further this goal, it is necessary to provide state-of-the-art research equipment to faculty and students so as to facilitate leading edge research capabilities.
Our intradepartmental collaborations at ASU as well as with NCSU, Duke, Army Research Office and NC regional industries will ensure this investment will have positive impacts on and off campus. ASU has a strong background in involving undergraduates in cutting edge research (www.osr.appstate.edu ). We plan to involve ASU graduate and undergraduate students in research projects utilizing the instrumentation. We believe that the proposed instrumentation and the collaboration with other institutions will help strengthen ASU?s development in education by exposing students to current research efforts, training students on the proposed instruments, and preparing students for careers in industry that require this type of instrumentation for quality assurance and root cause failure analysis. In addition to the research grade AFM, we propose to purchase a portable AFM for in- class demonstrations and active learning opportunities for ASU students. We will also use the portable AFM for community outreach education and recruiting efforts via visits to regional public schools (over all grade levels) and interactions with outreach groups, such as the Mathematics and Science Education Center, sponsored by the Department of Mathematics here at ASU. The acquisition of the portable AFM would aid in future outreach activities such as scholar weekends at ASU, the Duke TIP academy at ASU, and, to target education of minority groups, visits to inner city schools in the greater Charlotte area. We will also use the portable AFM to create active learning modules to be posted on our website that will be shared with other educators who wish to integrate AFM in the classroom to excite students in the hope they will continue to pursue nanotechnology related studies in college.

Layperson

The proposed acquisition of a research grade and educational atomic force microscope (AFM) for ASU?s Dept. of Physics & Astronomy will ensure that ongoing nanoscience, nanotechnology and renewable energy research on campus will continue to further knowledge within the respective scientific communities. Funding of this grant will encourage and promote a higher level of research in nanoscience at ASU and will be utilized to further projects including nanotribology, plasmonic bio-sensing, beam induced chemistry, noble metal nanoparticle templating, molecular self- assembly, and renewable energy initiatives. ASU is shifting its priorities to increase efforts on research in response to the needs of our state while maintaining and enhancing our traditional strengths in science education. In addition, the instrumentation will be used for outreach in western NC middle and high schools, as well as provide active learning for students on ASU?s campus. The AFMs will encourage student interest in nanoscience as well as science, technology, engineering and mathematics and ensure that undergraduate and graduate students will have hands-on experience with and knowledge of skills needed to contribute to a high technology workforce critical for growing the economy of NC and the US.

Nontechnical Description:
This project funds upgrades to a scanning probe microscope that is central to the research, teaching, and outreach activities at Appalachian State University. This system is critical to four different physics and chemistry research groups on campus and enables continued collaborations with several institutions, including Duke University and the Rochester Institute of Technology. Research performed using the upgraded system will be conducted primarily by undergraduates and Masters students and will focus on the development and characterization of electronic materials such as organic semiconductors and atomically thin crystals. It benefits the public by helping to develop renewable power sources and performant electronic technologies. In addition to research, the instrument is used daily for teaching and is integrated into Appalachian's graduate-level courses on microscopy techniques, materials science, and nanoscience. The microscope is also regularly featured in educational outreach and recruiting events, such as campus open house tours and Appalachian's Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) Expo, a science festival event that gathers approximately 2,500 K-12 students annually.

Technical Description:
This award allows the addition of two nanoscale imaging modes, Peakforce Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy and Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping, to the existing Dimension Icon scanning probe microscope at Appalachian. Kelvin Probe microscopy characterizes changes in the work function of a material at the nanoscale, whereas nanomechanical mapping images the spatial variations of the strain and elastic modulus. The team uses these modes to: (1) investigate and optimize the morphology of field-effect and photovoltaic devices based on organic semiconductor blends; (2) characterize local doping in van der Waals heterostructures; (3) image the local strain that arises from Moire effects in twisted van der Waals heterostructures; and (4) characterize the nanoscale morphology of switchable elastomeric materials based on metal-coordination complex crosslinked polymer networks.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.