MRI: Acquisition of an Analytical Transmission Electron Microscope for High-resolution, Rapid Nanoscale Compositional Mapping of Earth, Planetary, and Advanced Materials

该奖项来自主要研究仪器项目和数学与物理科学理事会多学科活动办公室，支持亚利桑那大学（UA）购买一台高分辨率的分析透射电子显微镜（TEM）。TEM支持科学家表征天然和先进材料的纳米级组成和结构特性，对多个联邦资助的研究项目具有重要意义。从行星材料提供我们的太阳系和地球的起源的见解，到纳米材料广泛影响下一代电子，光学和能源收集技术的核心国家利益。这种区域独特的研究仪器是美国西南地区现代测量科学的展示，为不同和服务不足的学生群体的大学提供服务。在UA获得TEM的同时：(a)开设了一门新的电子显微镜本科课程；(b)每年举办电子显微镜讲习班，以扩大区域用户基础；(c)一系列专题讨论会，以促进该工具所有用户之间的跨学科互动。该设施的研究、培训、技术开发、教育和推广工作是建立强大的伙伴关系和指导关系的焦点，促进STEM领域的招聘和保留，并培训下一代高技能科学家，以支持美国经济中高科技领域的增长。亚利桑那大学（UA）的高分辨率分析透射电子显微镜（TEM）专门用于提供各种材料的快速，原子尺度的化学和结构信息。该仪器在几分钟内获得纳米长度尺度的元素图。大大改善x射线计数统计的增强功能导致：(a)增强元素映射；(b)扫描TEM和能量色散x射线能谱/电子能量损失能谱中可忽略的漂移伪影；(c)提高了高分辨率成像的空间相干性。受新仪器影响的各种研究项目包括：太阳系前星尘颗粒和星周物质的表征；用于太阳能驱动燃料形成的催化剂尖端半导体纳米棒；光电器件中的电触点和钙钛矿活性层；金属陶瓷的晶界；纳米柱磁性隧道结；oxygen-conducting电解质;太阳能水分解材料；高压陆源材料；3 d打印材料;量子点作为新型电子材料；还有光子材料。由于缺乏常规的仪器，这些活动都受到限制，这些仪器可以将元素组成在纳米尺度上的快速测绘与TEM成像相结合。这种最先进的仪器在表征和材料研究之间建立了必要的反馈回路，并使跨学科科学和学生培训成为可能。

This award from the Major Research Instrumentation program and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate supports the acquisition of a high-resolution, analytical transmission electron microscope (TEM) by the University of Arizona (UA). The TEM suppports scientists in characterizing nanoscale compositional and structural properties of natural and advanced materials of significance for multiple federally funded research projects. These range from planetary materials providing insight into the origins of our solar system and planet, to nanomaterials broadly impacting the next generation of electronic, optical, and energy-harvesting technologies central to the national interest. This regionally unique research instrument is a showcase for modern measurement science in the US Southwest region and serves universities with diverse and underserved student populations. The TEM acquisition is accompanied at UA by: (a) the development of a new undergraduate course in electron microscopy; (b) annual electron microscopy workshops to expand the regional user base; and (c) a symposium series to stimulate cross-disciplinary interactions between all users of this instrument. The research, training, technology development, education and outreach efforts enabled by this facility serve as a focal point for forming robust partnerships and mentoring relationships that promote recruitment and retention in STEM fields and training the next generation of highly skilled scientists to support growth of the high-tech sector in the US economy.The high-resolution, analytical transmission electron microscope (TEM) at the University of Arizona (UA) is specifically configured to provide rapid, atomic-scale chemical and structural information on a wide range of materials. The instrument acquires elemental maps in minutes at nanometer length scales. Enhancements that dramatically improve X-ray counting statistics lead to: (a) enhanced elemental mapping; (b) negligible drift artifacts in scanning TEM and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy/electron energy-loss spectroscopy; and (c) improved spatial coherence for high-resolution imaging. The diverse research programs impacted by the new instrument include the characterization of: presolar stardust grains and circumstellar materials; catalyst-tipped semiconductor nanorods for solar-driven fuel formation; electrical contacts and perovskite active layers in photovoltaics; grain boundaries in metallic ceramics; nanopillar magnetic tunnel junctions; oxygen-conducting electrolytes; solar water splitting materials; high-pressure terrestrial materials; 3D-printing materials; quantum dots as new electronic materials; and photonic materials. Each of these activities has been limited by the lack of routine access to instrumentation that combines rapid mapping of elemental composition on nanometer length scales with TEM imaging. This state-of-the-art instrument establishes the essential feedback loop between characterization and materials research, and enables cross-disciplinary science and student training.