MRI: Acquisition of EDS Microanalysis and Nanometer Pattern Generation Systems for Electron Microscopy Facilities at a Primarily Undergraduate Consortium

MRI：在一个主要是本科生的联盟中采购用于电子显微镜设施的 EDS 微分析和纳米图案生成系统

• 批准号: 0618417
• 负责人: David Tanenbaum
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Pomona College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-09-01 至 2008-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0618417&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: MRI; Acquisition; EDS; Microanalysis; Nanometer

Technical AbstractPomona College will acquire new EDS microanalysis and nanometer pattern generationsystems to enhance the electron microscope facility at Pomona College. Thesesubsystems will be added to the college's field emission scanning electron microscope.The EDS system consists of an X-ray detector, a pulse processor, and an analyzer usedfor identification of elemental composition and mapping of specific elements withsubmicron resolution. The nanometer pattern generation system will allow the design andcreation of arbitrary patterns in polymers with features smaller than 50 nm withplacement accuracy less than 5 nm. We will upgrade the stage controller and In-Lenssecondary electron detector as well. The primary research projects will includenanostructure fabrication and characterization, combinatorial methods for materialsresearch and performance optimization, and the exceptional fossil deposits from theperiod of the 'Cambrian Explosion'. In addition to this, faculty colleagues from acrossthe Claremont Colleges Consortium have expressed interest in adding these specificcapabilities for research programs in Biology, Chemistry, Engineering, Geology, andPhysics. We anticipate that curricular modifications of laboratory courses in Chemistry,Geology, and Physics will result in approximately half of all undergraduates enrolled atPomona College being exposed to this instrumentation. Additionally, each year severalprograms bring large numbers of under-represented minority K-12 students and teachersto Pomona College. We will use this facility in outreach programs to inspire thesestudents to consider a future in science.Lay AbstractLarge numbers of our undergraduate students are already experiencing the wonders ofelectron microscopy. This facility allows students to study carbon nanotubes,nanostructures of thin films, chemical sensors, chemical reactions, and crystal and rockstructures formed in a variety of geologic processes. The advantages of this techniqueover traditional microscopy are a substantial improvement in both magnification anddepth of focus in the images. Electron microscopes have played a key role in both theadvances in modern electronics, biology, materials science, and the development ofnanotechnology. While our current microscope allows us to look at samples, the EDSsystem will allow us to identify the chemical elements in these samples. In other words,not only will we be able to image the samples, but we will also know what they are madefrom. The nanometer pattern generation system converts the electron microscope from atool for taking pictures to one that can draw tiny patterns that can be turned intoelectronics, sensors, motors, tunnels, optical switches and filters. In this mode anelectron beam is focused to a fine point and scanned by a computer in two dimensions towrite the patterns. The patterns are written in a special polymer resist film that can thenbe developed to show the final patterns. These patterns can be transferred from thepolymers to other materials by etching, plating, stamping, and many other techniques.

技术摘要波莫纳学院将购买新的 EDS 微分析和纳米图案生成系统，以增强波莫纳学院的电子显微镜设施。这些子系统将被添加到学院的场发射扫描电子显微镜中。EDS系统由X射线探测器、脉冲处理器和分析仪组成，用于识别元素成分并以亚微米分辨率绘制特定元素的图谱。纳米图案生成系统将允许在聚合物中设计和创建特征小于 50 nm 的任意图案，且放置精度小于 5 nm。我们还将升级平台控制器和镜头内二次电子探测器。主要研究项目将包括纳米结构制造和表征、材料研究和性能优化的组合方法，以及“寒武纪大爆发”时期的特殊化石矿床。除此之外，来自克莱蒙特学院联盟的教职员工表示有兴趣为生物学、化学、工程、地质学和物理学的研究项目添加这些特定功能。我们预计，化学、地质学和物理实验室课程的课程修改将使波莫纳学院大约一半的本科生接触到这种仪器。此外，每年都有多个项目将大量代表性不足的少数族裔 K-12 学生和教师带到波莫纳学院。我们将在推广计划中使用这一设施来激励这些学生考虑科学的未来。Lay Abstract我们的大量本科生已经体验到了电子显微镜的奇迹。该设施允许学生研究碳纳米管、薄膜纳米结构、化学传感器、化学反应以及在各种地质过程中形成的晶体和岩石结构。与传统显微镜相比，该技术的优点是图像的放大倍率和焦深都有显着改善。电子显微镜在现代电子学、生物学、材料科学的进步和纳米技术的发展中发挥了关键作用。虽然我们当前的显微镜可以让我们观察样品，但 EDS 系统可以让我们识别这些样品中的化学元素。换句话说，我们不仅能够对样本进行成像，而且还能知道它们是由什么制成的。纳米图案生成系统将电子显微镜从拍照工具转变为可以绘制微小图案的工具，这些图案可以转化为电子器件、传感器、电机、隧道、光开关和滤波器。在这种模式下，电子束聚焦到一个细点，并由计算机进行二维扫描以写入图案。这些图案被写入特殊的聚合物抗蚀剂薄膜中，然后可以将其显影以显示最终的图案。这些图案可以通过蚀刻、电镀、冲压和许多其他技术从聚合物转移到其他材料上。