Development of field emission low-voltage EPMA technique to sub-micron features in geoscience

该奖项将支持新分析技术的开发，以优化当今市场上最新一代电子微探针的应用。这些仪器提供的化学成分数据的尺度小于1微米，这是至关重要的解开许多地球科学过程的历史。 该研究和开发项目具有重大的潜在影响，为利用这些仪器在威斯康星州大学，其他NSF资助的设施和世界其他地方进行的研究提供指导。 该项目将雇用一名博士后研究生，为期两年，由这一新仪器支持的项目包括对地壳深部过程的许多研究：岩浆系统的岩石成因、爆炸性火山爆发的原因、麻粒岩和榴辉岩相变质的条件、金属和化石燃料的经济矿床的成因、主要剪切带的构造、Hadean锆石和陨石学。 近地表过程的研究包括：天体生物学、古气候学（生物碳酸盐和有孔虫、洞穴沉积）、成岩作用和盆地演化、浅断层带的胶结作用和纳米矿物。

This award will support the development of new analytical techniques to optimize the application of the newest generation electron microprobes on the market today. These instruments provide chemical composition data at scales less than one micrometer, which is crucial to unraveling the history of many earth science processes. This research and development project has significant potential impacts for providing guidance to utilization of these instruments for research being performed at the University of Wisconsin, in other NSF-funded facilities, and elsewhere around the world. The project will employ a postdoctoral research student for two years.Projects supported by this new instrument include many studies of deep-crustal processes: petrogenesisof magmatic systems, causes of explosive volcanic eruptions, conditions of granulite and of eclogite facies metamorphism, the genesis of economic deposits of metals and fossil fuels, tectonics of major shear zones, Hadean zircons, and meteoritics. Studies of near surface processes include: astrobiology, paleoclimatology (biogenic carbonates and foraminifera, speleothems), diagenesis and basin evolution, cementation in shallow fault zones, and nano-minerals.