Conference:Scialog:Accelerating Scientific Breakthroughs in Solar Energy Conversion with Team Science and Dialog 2013. The conference will be held at Biosphere 2 near Tucson, AZ.

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Research Objectives and ApproachesThe objective of this research is to accelerate breakthroughs in solar energy conversion to electricity and fuels. The approach is to attain this objective through synergy created by grants to researchers with highly innovative ideas, support for intensive dialog at conferences and community building across disciplines. Scientists who receive grants are typically not more than five years past earning tenure. Such awardees are poised to attempt truly transformative research projects that were too risky while working toward tenure. Annual meetings are held at Biosphere 2 and are attended by a diverse group of scientists who participate in highly interactive sessions to identify bottlenecks, find avenues for breakthroughs, and build new scientific teams to facilitate the breakthroughs. Intellectual MeritConvening these outstanding early career awardees with other preeminent researchers to engage in alternative methods for creative dialog and for building scientific teams will have a transformative impact on the field of solar energy conversion. Scialog is demonstrating a novel approach to convening scientists to accelerate high-risk research and showing that authentic dialog is a valid scientific methodology. Broader ImpactScialog will directly support high risk projects for approximately forty outstanding early career U.S. academic scientists and their research groups, including postdoctoral researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, and technicians, many of whom are women and/or from underrepresented minorities. Based on this support, many of these young researchers will be prepared to form the vanguard of the next generation of U.S. scientific innovators.