IRES Track I: Collaborative Research: Interdisciplinary Research in Korea on Applied Smart Systems (IRiKA) for Undergraduate Students

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Interdisciplinary Research in Korea on Applied smart systems (IRiKA) for Undergraduate Students will provide a cohort of five US undergraduate students per year with the opportunity to conduct research for 8 weeks at Korea's top-ranked universities with state-of-the-art research facilities: Seoul National University, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and Ewha Womans University. Over the lifetime of this 3-year project, 15 students will participate. Students from underrepresented groups will be recruited. The unifying research theme of IRiKA is smart systems with the subtopics of sensors, emerging electronics, and materials and process development. In addition to lab work and weekly cohort research meetings, IRiKA students will visit Korea's government research institutions and global leaders in the tech industry such as Samsung, LG, and Hyundai. The distinctive features of IRiKA are: 1) A cohort experience bringing the US participants together; 2) Vetted and structured professional development program tailored for both US students and Korean mentors; and 3) Availability of follow-on collaborative projects in US and Korea to facilitate a sustained global network of mentorship. Students will gain formative research skills and learn how smart systems brings together interdisciplinary technological solutions for manufacturing, healthcare, energy, safety and security, transportation, and logistics. The international aspect of the IRiKA will help students recognize their place in the global scientific community. The participants will present their work at their home institutions upon their return and will be incentivized to publish in a peer-reviewed journal or present at a conference for broader dissemination. Interdisciplinary Research in Korea on Applied smart systems (IRiKA) for Undergraduate Students will engage students in interdisciplinary research, help them develop a global perspective on collaboration, and motivate them to pursue a career in STEM research. Efforts will be made to attract students underrepresented in STEM and/or with limited STEM research opportunities. IRiKA takes a scaffolded mentorship approach that fosters students' growth from a relatively dependent status to as independent a status as their competence warrants. Smart systems incorporate sensing, actuation, wireless connectivity, and machine learning. Examples of research projects that individual students will conduct during 8 weeks in Korea include: Development of an air-borne particle sensing system for health monitoring and air quality monitoring; Development of miniature and micro power generation systems to enable autonomous sensor systems; and Development of a light-weight, flexible point-of-care device consisting of microfluidic channels and reduced graphene oxide-based biosensors. Upon return to the US, students will be able to engage in follow-on projects in areas such as convergent IoT systems at University of Florida's NSF I/UCRC Multi-functional Integrated Systems Technology (MIST) center and wearable sensor systems at Louisiana State University.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.