Workshop on Electromagnetic Effects in Materials Synthesis: Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; 5-6 June 2017

一些技术上重要的材料需要长时间的高温加工，因此需要大量的成本和能源足迹。微波辐射和激光等电磁波可以降低加工各种材料的温度和时间，从烹饪食物、制造药物和3D打印塑料部件到精密手术的应用。所有这些例子的共同点是，材料内部吸收的电磁场可能不会立即转化为热量，而是可以促进其他形式的化学或物理反应。这项拨款为组织一个为期两天的首届研讨会提供资金，以促进使用电磁场（特别是微波辐射和激光）制造材料的研究团体之间的合作。本次研讨会将在两个社区的成员之间进行讨论和交流，以解决在使用电磁场进行材料合成/加工方面长期存在的科学挑战。从工业的角度来看，与传统合成相比，使用电磁场加工先进材料的技术进步可以产生更小的能源足迹，因此将对社会产生深远的影响。这些材料还将在可持续基础设施、交通、清洁能源、水管理和医疗保健等不同领域得到应用。本次研讨会将促进使用电磁场，特别是微波辐射和激光进行材料合成的研究团体之间的合作。两个群体共同面临的一个巨大挑战是，电磁激励下的非平衡、非热化学和相变背后的基本机制在很大程度上仍然未知。例如，已经报道了微波辐射和激光（例如脉冲激光退火）对陶瓷的低温结晶和烧结，这是具有重要工业意义的潜在非热效应，因为即使在相同的热分布下，传统的合成路线也无法复制结果。因此，在邀请演讲和分组讨论环节中，将重点研究(1)理论模型，(2)实验工具，(3)现场和操作中的表征技术，以及(4)识别和证明电磁场下存在的远平衡效应并将其应用于合理设计材料的计算方法。持续的目标将是建立一个跨实验和理论/计算研究小组的多学科社区，通过组织定期会议，发起合作，构思变革性的研究建议，这将导致在该领域长期存在的问题的答案。

Several materials of technological importance require high temperature processing over long durations and thus demand a large cost and energy footprint. Electromagnetic waves such as microwave radiation and lasers can lower both temperatures and times involved in processing various types of materials, ranging from cooking food, making pharmaceutical drugs and 3D printed plastic parts to applications in precision surgery. What is common to all these examples is the idea that the electromagnetic fields absorbed within a material may not be immediately converted to heat, but can instead promote other forms of chemical or physical reactions. This grant provides funding to organize an inaugural two-day workshop to foster collaboration between the research communities that use electromagnetic fields (in particular microwave radiation and lasers) for making materials. This workshop will generate discussions and cross-pollinate ideas between members of both communities addressing longstanding scientific challenges in using electromagnetic fields for materials synthesis/processing. From an industrial standpoint, technological advances in processing advanced materials using electromagnetic fields can have a smaller energy footprint compared to conventional synthesis and as such will have a profound impact on society. These materials will additionally find use in diverse areas like sustainable infrastructure, transportation, clean energy, water management, and healthcare. This workshop will foster collaborations between the research communities that use electromagnetic fields, particularly microwave radiation and lasers for materials synthesis. A grand challenge common to both communities is that the fundamental mechanisms behind far-from-equilibrium, non-thermal chemical and phase transformations under electromagnetic excitation remain largely unknown. For example, the low temperature crystallization and sintering of ceramics by both microwave radiation and lasers (e.g., pulsed laser annealing) has been reported and are potential non-thermal effects of significant industrial importance, as conventional synthetic routes even under the same thermal profile cannot reproduce the results. Accordingly, specific focus during the invited talks and break-out discussion sessions will be placed on examining (1) theoretical models, (2) experimental tools, (3) in-situ and in-operando characterization techniques, and (4) computational methods to identify and prove the existence of far-from-equilibrium effects under electromagnetic fields and apply them for rational design of materials. The continuing goal will be to establish a multidisciplinary community spanning experimental and theoretical/computational research groups by organizing regular meetings, initiating collaborations, and conceiving transformative research proposals that will lead to answers to the longstanding questions in the field.