Aquisition of a Variable Pressure Scanning Electron Microscope for Multiple Use in Research and Education

EAR-0240251Jacb这个多学科项目将资助一种新的扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、溅射镀膜机和临界点烘干机。扫描电子显微镜将使科学家和工程师能够以400倍到10,000倍的放大倍数看到物体的表面。计划购买的型号将是对SMU过时的20年设备的巨大改进，这些设备要么不再以最高效率运行，要么使用过时的图像记录方法。与旧设备相比的关键改进包括：(1)无需首先在样品上涂覆金属物质即可成像的能力，(2)倾斜和旋转的样品台，(3)大型样品室，(4)溅射镀膜机(比目前的蒸发镀膜机更好)，用于需要金属涂层时使用，以及(5)能对样品进行元素分析的能量色散光谱仪(EDS)。对于稀有的古生物和考古标本的研究或从不允许对化石或文物进行任何改变的国家借来的标本，无需涂覆金属涂层即可成像的能力是必不可少的。需要扫描而不影响样品表面的化学研究产品也需要在没有涂层的情况下进行成像。我们预计将对花卉、水果、种子、树叶、牙齿、骨骼、石器以及实验聚合物和金属进行成像。SMU的古生物学研究涉及热带非洲的植被变化、植物区系进化史和小型哺乳动物的进化、一些白垩纪针叶树的进化史、恐龙牙齿上牙齿微磨损的饮食含义，以及鳄鱼及其近亲的进化史。考古学研究将利用新的EDS来分析美国西南部陶瓷文物上的釉面，这将有助于确定产地，并划定13世纪和14世纪不同普埃布兰群体之间的贸易路线。化学家将能够评估对聚合物薄膜的测试，这些测试可能会影响从微电子到燃料电池技术等领域的发展。机械工程项目需要对材料沉积系统进行测试，通过改变从计算机设计到现实的过程，这将对制造技术产生重大影响。这项研究产生的数字图像将用于正在进行的公共宣传。古生物研究小组已经在为一个由NSF支持的大型展览进行咨询，该展览目前正在沃斯堡科学与历史博物馆建设中。工程和化学技术将通过与商界建立的联系向公众转让。*

EAR-0240251JacobsThis multidisciplinary project will fund a new scanning electron microscope (SEM), sputter coater, and critical point dryer. The SEM will enable scientists and engineers to see the surfaces of objects at magnifications ranging from 400X to 10,000X. The model slated for purchase will be a vast improvement over SMU's out-dated 20-year-old equipment, which either no longer operates at maximum efficiency or uses antiquated methods for documenting images. Critical improvements over the old equipment include (1) the ability to image specimens without first coating them with a metallic substance, (2) a sample stage that tilts and rotates, (3) a large sample chamber, (4) a sputter coater (better than the current evaporative coater) for use when metallic coating is necessary, and (5) an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), which allows elemental analysis of samples. The ability to image without applying a metallic coating is essential for study of paleontological and archaeological specimens that are rare or on loan from nations that do not permit any alteration of fossils or artifacts. Products of chemical research that require scanning without compromising the sample's surface also require imaging without coating. We anticipate imaging fossil flowers, fruit, seeds, leaves, teeth, bones, stone tools, and experimental polymers and metals. Paleontological research at SMU addresses vegetation change, floral evolutionary history, and small mammal evolution in tropical Africa, evolutionary history of some Cretaceous conifers, the dietary implications of tooth micro-wear on dinosaur teeth, and the evolutionary history of crocodiles and their relatives. Research in archaeology will make use of the new EDS to analyze the glaze on ceramic artifacts from the American Southwest, which can help determine source area and delimit trade routes among various Puebloan groups during the 13th and 14th centuries. Chemists will be able to evaluate tests on polymer films that have the potential to affect development in areas from microelectronics to fuel cell technology. Mechanical engineering projects require testing of material deposition systems that will is significantly impact manufacturing technology by changing the process of going from computer design to reality. The digital images produced by this research will be used in ongoing public outreach. The paleontological research group is already consulting on a major NSF-supported exhibit currently under construction at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. Engineering and chemical technologies will transfer to the public via established ties with the business community.***