MRI: Acquisition of a Magnetic Property Measurements System

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This Major Research Instrumentation award will provide support for the acquisition of a state-of-the-art magnetometer that combines extreme sensitivity with multiple measurement modes. The instrument will meet a critical need for cutting-edge magnetic characterization, particularly for a wide variety of functional magnetic and superconducting nanostructures, on the Georgetown campus and in the greater District of Columbia area. The research projects that will be enabled by this instrument have potentially major technological impacts in low power nanoelectronics, quantum computation, magnetic recording, magnetic semiconductors, nanophotonics, catalysis and bioinorganic chemistry, magnetic resonance imaging, and hyperthermia therapeutics. The instrument will have a strong impact on broadening participation of underrepresented groups in STEM fields from a broad user base at Georgetown and nearby institutions. It will also be utilized to provide research experience for undergraduate students through several partner REU programs. This Major Research Instrumentation award support the acquisition of a Magnetic Property Measurement System (MPMS3), with unique technical features that are critical to support many current and future research efforts at Georgetown University. The extreme sensitivity, wide magnetic field range and temperature span, versatile operation modes, and cryogen-free capability are essential for studying a wide variety of technologically important magnetic and superconducting materials. The interdisciplinary research projects that will be enabled by this instrument include topological spin textures, chiral Majorana fermions, next generation heat-assisted magnetic recording media, single-molecule magnets, magnetic semiconductors, biomedical applications of magnetic nanoparticles, structure-property relationships in f-element materials, paramagnetic molecular complexes in catalysis and bioinorganic chemistry, and molecular spintronics based computational and memory devices. The instrument will be integrated with graduate and undergraduate curriculum to provide students with hands-on learning experiences, and promote teaching, learning and training.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.