Center for Research and Education in Optical Sciences and Applications: Promoting Scientific Discoveries, Technological Advances, and STEM Education

光学科学与应用研究与教育中心（CREOSA）于2006年在特拉华州立大学成立，是美国国家科学基金会科学与技术卓越研究中心（CREST）。二期中心将以该项目前6年的成就为基础，继续关注光学科学和应用物理学。CREOSA一直在特拉华州立大学（一所历史悠久的黑人大学）领导系统性和变革性的教育、研究和推广项目。一个新的光学博士项目已经启动（HBCU唯一的一个），利用CREST奖来确保建造一个专门用于光学研究的新大楼的资金，将学术出版物增加了6倍，能够雇用9名新教师，为DSU授权了第一个知识产权，并提供了新一代光学科学家的研究生培训，主要来自少数民族。该中心还在创造创新整合文化方面发挥了重要作用，以促进DSU的跨部门和多学科研究和教育。美国国家科学基金会对CREOSA的持续支持使特拉华州州立大学在光学科学方面取得了全国的突出成就，同时为将参加并将被吸引到DSU的少数学生提供服务。VisionCREOSA中心将成为一个可持续发展的单位，旨在实现光学科学研究和教育的国家突出地位，并致力于教育、培训和准备传统上在科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）领域代表性不足的群体。中心使命creosa将整合多学科和跨学科的方法来(1)进行光学科学的前沿研究；(2)提供世界一流的光学科学教育，重点为STEM中历史上代表性不足的群体提供服务；(3)完善我校光学科学研究基础设施；(4)通过扩大代表性不足的群体在各级研究和教育中的参与，包括K-12、本科生、研究生、博士后研究人员和教职员工，显著提高具有光学科学背景的劳动力的多样性。creosa将利用光学、生物学、生物化学、数学和计算科学等领域研究活动的跨学科性质。三个研究子项目构成了中心研究和教育活动的基础：1。拥挤和复杂媒体中生物大分子的光谱和成像这个子项目将光学科学和生物科学结合在一起，处于技术的前沿。该研究有可能在宿主环境中准确检测、鉴定和分类各种生物大分子方面达到前所未有的极限。这些生物分子可以作为诊断和治疗各种疾病的新型生物标志物，是纳米医学领域快速发展的研究背后的关键思想。纳米金刚石的自旋极化光谱用于纳米级传感和成像子项目小组将研究研究纳米级材料的光谱方法。这项工作补充了第一个子项目的活动，因为它将提供探索单个和/或复杂生物大分子的途径。这些材料可能为固态量子信息处理的发展提供重要的推动力。实验光学中的交互式数据挖掘系统这个子项目将实验光学与数据挖掘的重要元素联系起来。前两个子项目中提出的研究将创建大量复杂的数据，这将需要一种集成的方法，其中数据驱动的机器学习技术与光谱数据分析中的理想模型和专家知识相结合。要开发的技术将有助于解决当多学科光学研究的几位科学家合作和交换实验数据和提取信息时发生的通信瓶颈。更广泛的影响特拉华州立大学超过65%的学生是非洲裔美国人，从第一阶段奖励中建立的新博士项目是该人群的重要资源，无论是在高级研究生项目方面，还是在激励更多来自代表性不足群体的学生攻读STEM学位方面，研究都起到了榜样作用。与菲斯克-范德比尔特博士桥梁项目的合作伙伴关系已经启动，这将刺激这些机构的双向途径。一个积极的研究生专业发展计划将启动，同时组织良好的招聘和指导活动。由于光学科学项目的高知名度，该项目也将成为DSU和特拉华州其他地方的URM团体招收STEM领域本科生的核心。DSU将继续为大学预科学生和普通社区开展外展活动，例如在前五年为来自23所大学的89名学生准备的夏季项目，赞助特拉华科学联盟和物理日等活动的开放日。该项目将在多个学术平台上继续加强DSU的课程。其中包括物理和预工程系的电气工程、光学工程和生物工程的新课程，以及物理和物理教育课程的更新。新的教育实验室将作为世界一流成像设施的一部分发展，这些设施是正在建造的新大楼的一部分。这些研究调查有可能对人类健康和反恐产生深远影响。这项工作将为疾病早期征兆的医学诊断和用于打击生物恐怖主义的病原体检测提供更强有力的科学基础。该奖项部分由美国国家科学基金会“刺激竞争性研究实验项目”资助。

The Center for Research and Education in Optical Sciences and Applications (CREOSA) was established at Delaware State University in 2006 as a NSF Center of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST). The Phase II Center will build on accomplishments of the first 6 years of the program, with a continued focus on optical sciences and applied physics. The CREOSA has been leading systemic and transformative educational, research, and outreach programs at Delaware State University, a Historically Black University. A new doctoral program in Optics has been initiated (the only one at an HBCU), leveraged the CREST award to secure funds for construction of a new building dedicated to optics research, increased scholarly publications by a factor of 6, enabled the hiring of 9 new faculty members, licensed the first intellectual property for DSU, and provided graduate student training of a new generation of optical scientists, mostly from minority groups. The Center also was instrumental in creating a culture of innovative integration to foster interdepartmental and multidisciplinary research and education at DSU. The continued support by the NSF for CREOSA has enable Delaware State to achieve national prominence in optical sciences while serving the minority population of students that will attend and will be drawn to DSU. Center VisionCREOSA will be a sustainable unit that seeks to achieve national prominence in research and education in optical sciences with a strong commitment to educate, train, and prepare traditionally underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).Center MissionCREOSA will integrate multi- and inter-disciplinary approaches to (1) Perform cutting-edge research in optical sciences; (2) Provide world-class education in optical sciences with a focus on serving historically underrepresented groups in STEM; (3) Improve the research infrastructure in optical sciences at DSU; and (4) Enhance significantly the diversity of the workforce with backgrounds in optical sciences by broadening participation of underrepresented groups in research and education at all levels which includes the population groups from K-12, undergraduate, graduate students, post-doctoral researchers, and faculty.Intellectual MeritCREOSA will exploit the interdisciplinary nature of research activities across fields of optics, biology, biochemistry, mathematics and computational sciences. Three research subprojects form the foundation of the Center's research and educational activities:1. Spectroscopy and Imaging of Biomacromolecules in Crowded and Complex MediaThis subproject brings together optical sciences and biological sciences at the technological cutting edge. The research has the potential to attain unprecedented limits for the accurate detection, identification, and classification of diverse bio-macromolecules in their host environments. These biomolecules may serve as novel biomarkers for diagnosis and treatment of various diseases and are the key idea behind the rapidly developing research in the field of nanomedicine.2. Spin Polarization Spectrosopy in Nanodiamond for Nanoscale Sensing and ImagingThe subproject team will investigate spectroscopic methods of studying nanoscale materials. The work complements the activity of the first subproject, in that it will provide avenues to probe single and/or complex biomacromolecules. These materials may provide an important driver in the development of solid-state quantum information processing.3. A System for Interactive Data Mining in Experimental Optics This subproject will link experimental optics with important elements of data mining. The research proposed in both of the first two subprojects will create a large amount of complex data, which will require an integrated approach in which data-driven machine learning techniques are coupled with idealized models and expert knowledge in the analysis of spectroscopic data. The techniques to be developed will help resolve the communication bottleneck that occurs when several scientists in multidisciplinary optics research collaborate and exchange experimental data and extracted information. Broader ImpactsMore than 65% of the students at Delaware State are African American, and the new doctoral program established from the Phase I award is an important resource for that population, both in terms of advanced graduate programs and as a model for the role of research in stimulating more students from underrepresented groups to pursue STEM degrees. A partnership with the Fisk-Vanderbilt doctoral bridge program has been initiated, which will stimulate pathways IN BOTH DIRECTIONS for these institutions. An active professional development program for graduate students will be initiated, concurrent with a well organized recruitment and mentoring activities. The program will also be at the heart of recruitment efforts for undergraduate students to matriculate in STEM fields at DSU and from URM groups in Delaware elsewhere, because of the high visibility of the optical sciences program.DSU will continue outreach activities for pre-college students and the general community, such as a summer program that has prepared 89 students from 23 universities during the first five years, sponsorship of events such as open houses for the Delaware Science Alliance and Physics Days. The project will continue the enhancement of the curriculum at DSU, across several academic platforms. These include new tracks in electrical engineering, optical engineering, and bio-engineering in the Department of Physics and Pre-Engineering, as well as updates to the curricula for physics and physics education. New educational laboratories will be developed as part of the world-class imaging facilities that are part of a new building being constructed.The research investigations have the potential for profound impact on human health and counterterrorism. The work will provide a stronger scientific foundation that could yield new technologies for medical diagnostics of early signs of disease and to detect pathogens used to fight bio-terrorism. This award has been partially funded through the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research at the National Science Foundation.