MRI: Acquisition of an Atomic Force Microscope for Multidisciplinary Research and Undergraduate Education

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This Major Research Instrumentation grant funds the acquisition of an atomic force microscope, which supports multidisciplinary research and undergraduate education at Linfield College as well as at nearby colleges/universities. This microscope provides detailed images of sample surfaces at nanometer scale as well as specialized capabilities that can map electrical, magnetic, and elastic properties of the surfaces. As such, this instrument enables new research on topics of high societal impact, including novel electronic materials, biosensors, energy conversion, drug delivery, and health of the marine environment. Since the institutions using the microscope are primarily undergraduate serving, the projects undertaken have been carefully chosen to engage this population in meaningful research that can realistically deliver results. This microscope is also central to the undergraduate experience at Linfield by allowing high quality training, ranging from course laboratories to summer research to senior capstone projects, for a large number of undergraduate students. In addition, because the microscope delivers compelling images that engage students in the excitement of scientific research, the instrument is also used to broaden participation of underrepresented students in the sciences. It is integrated in Linfield's pre-orientation science camp for entering first-year and transfer students, a scholarship program for undergraduates with high financial need, and outreach efforts that seek to build excitement about the sciences among high school students.This atomic force microscope greatly expands experimental capabilities at Linfield College and in the region, enabling a wide range of research projects including: investigating electronic properties of two-dimensional materials and devices; developing graphene-based biosensors; creating electronically active silica xerogel and aerogel materials for use in sensors; synthesizing functional thermo-responsive polymeric micelles for drug delivery applications; probing the roles of cytoskeletal motors in phagocytosis in retinal pigment epithelium cells; imaging interactions between microbes and their host sponges; and understanding surface passivation effects on optical emission from quantum dots. The microscope is essential to these projects, yielding high resolution spatial characterization of the topographic and electronic properties of materials and devices, identification and study of biological structures, and force spectroscopy of cellular features.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.