IGERT: The Vanderbilt-Fisk Interdisciplinary Program for Research and Education in the Nanosciences (VaFIPREN)

范德比尔特-菲斯克纳米科学研究和教育跨学科计划是一个研究生水平的计划，重点是与纳米科学和工程相关的研究和研究生教育。这个IGERT项目结合了菲斯克大学和范德比尔特大学的资源，形成了独特的大学合作伙伴关系。学生可以进入范德比尔特大学获得博士学位，或者进入菲斯克大学，获得硕士学位，然后进入范德比尔特大学攻读博士学位。智力优势与研究目标和教育目标有关，研究目标是纳米科学和工程的基础和综合方法；教育目标是以跨学科材料科学为中心的项目，旨在培养研究生成为自我启动者和自学成才的人。教育和研究目标建立在对纳米级现代材料科学所需的真正跨学科方法的广泛需求上。研究主题是纳米结构材料的创建、表征和建模。这是因为最近在低维和创造独特的纳米结构方面的进展，进入了设计的量子限制领域，并实现了新的材料性质。教育部分包括交叉学科材料科学的完整背景，这些学科提供纳米科学和纳米尺度工程的基础，包括当前的理论、模型和实验实践。IGERT学生将为与纳米技术相关的快速变化的环境做好准备。教育计划的特点包括研究轮换、实习、教学任务和跨学科纳米科学、文献检索和科学伦理的专门课程。这个项目的更广泛的影响在于菲斯克大学(授予HBCU的理科硕士学位)和范德比尔特大学之间的紧密耦合。IGERT预计将成为这两个机构相互促进和激励代表不足的群体参与纳米级研究和教育的一个重要因素。此外，我们期待IGERT的教育方面提供一个跨学科教育的新概念，以适应纳米科学和工程时代。IGERT是一个NSF范围内的项目，旨在应对培养具有跨学科背景、所选学科的深厚知识以及满足未来职业需求所需的技术、专业和个人技能的美国博士科学家和工程师的挑战。该项目旨在通过建立创新的研究生教育和培训新模式，在超越传统学科界限的合作研究的肥沃环境中，催化研究生教育的文化变革。在该计划的第六个年头，由NSF支持的共同跨越科学和工程领域的项目将被授予机构奖项。

The Vanderbilt-Fisk Interdisciplinary Program for Research and Education in the Nanosciences is a graduate level program focused on research and graduate student education associated with nanoscale science and engineering. This IGERT program combines the resources of Fisk University and Vanderbilt University in a unique university partnership. Students may enter Vanderbilt and earn a Ph.D., or enter Fisk University, earn a M.S., and then matriculate to the Vanderbilt Ph.D. The intellectual merit is associated with both the research goal - a fundamental and comprehensive approach to the nano-scale science and engineering; and the educational goal- a program, centered in interdisciplinary materials science, to train graduate students to be self-starters and self-learners. Educational and research goals are built on the extensive need for a true interdisciplinary approach required for modern materials science at the nano-scale level. The research theme is the creation, characterization and modeling of nano-structured materials. This is motivated by recent advances in lower dimensionality and creation of unique nanostructures, to access the realm of designed quantum confinement and to realize new materials properties. The educational component comprises a complete background in the interdisciplinary materials sciences which provide the underpinnings of nano-science and nano scale engineering, including current theory, modeling, and experimental practices. IGERT students will be prepared for the fast changing environment associated within nanotechnology. Features of the educational schedule include research rotations, internships, teaching assignments and specialized courses in interdisciplinary nano-science, literature retrieval and science ethics. The broader impact of this project lies in the very strong coupling between Fisk University (a M.S. granting HBCU) and Vanderbilt University. The IGERT is expected to be a significant factor in the cross-fertilization of these two institutions and the stimulation of under-represented groups to participate in nano-scale research and education. In addition we expect the educational aspects of the IGERT to provide a new concept in interdisciplinary education, tuned to the era of nano-scale science and engineering. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. In this sixth year of the program, awards are being made to institutions for programs that collectively span the areas of science and engineering supported by NSF.