Acquisition of a scanning electron microscope with integrated EDS for enhancement of multi-disciplinary undergraduate research and research training

丹尼森大学地球科学系获得一台场发射扫描电子显微镜丹尼森大学地球科学系将获得一台场发射扫描电子显微镜(SEM)，以测量许多材料的化学成分和结构。该仪器将加强丹尼森学院与有才华的本科生一起进行的教员研究。该仪器将支持许多领域的研究，包括分析岩浆过程以增进对火山历史的了解，以及开发可导致可持续技术和高效能源的新的电子材料和电极。对于像丹尼森的小型文理学院这样的本科院校来说，获得尖端技术是至关重要的，它本质上是住宿的，地理上与世隔绝；它能够培训有竞争力的劳动力，并培养科学领导者。该项目由年轻的、多样化的教员领导，他们将在未来几年使用SEM进行研究、教学和社区参与。丹尼森有几个项目来支持科学界代表性不足的少数群体。对于这些申请研究生院或大学毕业后进入职场的学生来说，使用最先进的分析仪器的经验尤其重要。丹尼森位于农村的位置将吸引来自附近机构的合作者，包括当地的学校、大学和地区校园，否则这些机构将无法使用这些设施。该奖项授予丹尼森大学，以支持采购场发射扫描电子显微镜(FE-SEM)、集成能量色散光谱(EDS)和阴极发光(CL)用于元素分析和表征的设备以及样品制备设备。这一最先进的仪器将极大地加强当前的研究，并为丹尼森大学的教职员工和学生的研究、研究培训和教学开辟新的探索路线，包括地球科学系、化学和生物化学系以及生物系。该仪器的功能是为支持科学教师外部和内部资助的研究的需求而定制的：(1)各种材料的高分辨率和高倍率表征和成像；(2)通过EDS和CL对晶体和其他材料进行定性、半定量和定量分析；以及(3)变压能力，可对低导电、非导电和潮湿样品进行成像和分析。具体而言，在地球科学方面，扫描电子显微镜-能谱分析/化学发光分析将能够量化火山岩和火山岩中的火成岩晶体和玻璃成分的分带，评估土壤和河流沉积物上的颗粒涂层，用于伽马能谱，并在进行同位素分析之前记录双壳类软体动物化石的成岩蚀变。在化学和生物化学方面，该仪器将支持多种功能材料开发途径，包括新型激光可写电荷转移液晶，以及用于物理表征和EDS确定混合金属掺杂元素组成的纳米结构光电极和催化剂的成像。最后，在生物学方面，该仪器将允许在低真空下或使用临界点烘干机对未成熟和成熟的花朵的表面结构和解剖进行检查。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Acquisition of a field emission scanning electron microscope at Denison University Geosciences DepartmentDenison University's Geosciences Department will acquire a field emission scanning electron microscope (SEM) to measure chemical composition and structure of many materials. The instrument will enhance faculty research, carried out with talented undergraduate students at Denison. The instrument will support research in many areas including analysis of magmatic processes to improve understanding of volcanic history and development of new electronic materials and electrodes that could lead to sustainable technologies and efficient energy sources. Access to leading-edge technology is critical for undergraduate institutions like Denison's small liberal arts college that is residential in nature and geographically isolated; it enables training of a competitive workforce and prepares scientific leaders. The project is led by young, diverse faculty who will use the SEM for years to come for their research, teaching, and community engagement. Denison has several programs to support underrepresented minority groups in the sciences. Experience using a state-of-the-art analytical instrument is especially important for these students who apply to graduate school or enter the workforce after their college careers. Denison's rural location will draw collaborators to this SEM facility from nearby institutions, including local schools, colleges, and regional campuses, that would not otherwise have access to such facilities. The award is made to Denison University to support the acquisition of a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), with integrated energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and cathodoluminescence (CL) for elemental analysis and characterization, along with sample preparation equipment. The state-of-the-art instrument will greatly enhance current research and open new lines of inquiry for faculty and student research, research training, and teaching across the science divisions at Denison, including the Departments of Geosciences, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Biology. The instrument's capabilities are customized to support the needs of science faculty externally and internally funded research: (1) high resolution and high magnification characterization and imaging of a wide variety of materials; (2) qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative analysis for crystals and other materials, both natural and synthetic, via EDS and CL; and (3) variable pressure capability for versatility in imaging and analysis of low- to non-conducting, as well as wet, samples. Specifically, in Geosciences, the SEM-EDS/ CL will allow for quantification of the zoning of igneous crystals and composition of glass in volcanic rocks and tephra, and for the evaluation of grain coatings on soil and fluvial sediment for gamma spectroscopy and documentation of diagenetic alteration in fossil bivalve mollusks prior to isotopic analysis. In Chemistry and Biochemistry, the instrument will support multiple avenues of functional materials development, including novel laser-writable charge-transfer liquid crystals, as well as the imaging of nanostructured photoelectrodes and catalysts for physical characterization and determination of the elemental composition of mixed-metal dopants by EDS. Finally, in Biology, the instrument will allow for the examination of surface structures and anatomy of immature and mature flowers under low vacuum or processed using the critical point dryer.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.