Acquisition of a SEM-EDS-CL microanalytical system for research, teaching, and outreach in Geology at Colby College, a Primarily Undergraduate Institution (PUI)

这笔赠款用于购买新的最先进的扫描电子显微镜(SEM)，用于高分辨率成像和分析地球材料，如火山灰、陨石和断层岩。这一新仪器将用于支持和丰富科尔比学院地质系正在进行的研究，它将为地质学和其他STEM领域的本科生提供宝贵的培训机会。这一新的扫描电子显微镜系统也是课堂使用的理想选择，将被整合到科尔比地质学的所有级别的课程中，从地质学入门到高级顶石体验。生物系和物理系的科尔比教员也将把扫描电子显微镜纳入他们的教学和研究计划，从而增加新仪器的整体影响。扫描电子显微镜将被校园内的不同学生群体使用，包括科尔比沉浸式暑期项目的一年级新生，该项目面向对科学感兴趣的代表不足或弱势群体的学生。地质学教师还将通过参与社区推广计划，与缅因州中部以农村为主、服务不足的人口分享研究成果。科尔比学院获得的这一奖项是为了表彰他购买了一台变压扫描电子显微镜，该显微镜配备了低真空二次(SE)探测器、高灵敏度背向散射电子(BSE)探测器、能谱仪(EDS)和彩色阴极发光(COLOR-CL)探测器。新的扫描电子显微镜系统将支持科尔比学院的各种研究举措，包括：1)了解削弱断层带岩石并帮助控制地震引发的断层滑动事件的物理和化学机制；2)阐明以陨石形式坠落地球的小行星碎片所记录的太阳系早期演化；3)限制过去火山喷发对气候的影响，并评估大气尘埃沉积对海洋生态系统生产力的影响。扫描电子显微镜系统将提高科尔比学院地质系教员的研究能力，并将使约60名地质学专业本科生在未来十年从事研究。使用SEM将允许学生用户发展尖端技能，这些技能将对未来在广泛的STEM领域的职业生涯有用。其他STEM领域的教师也将把扫描电子显微镜纳入他们的教学和研究计划，从而增加新仪器的整体影响。该项目将帮助地质系通过他们正在进行的科尔比科学成就项目(Colby Achievement Program In The Science)招募和留住来自代表性不足或弱势背景的学生-这是一个为期6周的沉浸式暑期项目，面向对STEM专业感兴趣的代表不足群体的一年级新生。该奖项由既定的激励竞争研究计划(EPSCoR)办公室共同资助。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。

This grant funds the acquisition of a new state-of-the-art scanning-electron-microscope (SEM) for high-resolution imaging and analysis of Earth materials, such as volcanic dust, meteorites, and fault rocks. This new instrument will be used to support and enrich ongoing research in the Geology department at Colby College, and it will provide valuable training opportunities for undergraduate students in Geology and other STEM fields. This new SEM system also is ideal for classroom use and will be integrated into all levels of Colby’s geology curriculum, from introductory geology to senior capstone experiences. Colby faculty in the Biology and Physics Departments also will incorporate the SEM into their teaching and research programs, thus increasing the overall impact of the new instrument. The SEM will be used by a diverse group of students across campus, including incoming first-year students in Colby’s immersive summer program for students from underrepresented or disadvantaged groups who are interested in science. Geology faculty also will share research results with the mostly rural, underserved population of central Maine through their participation in community outreach programs. This award to Colby College is for the acquisition of a variable-pressure scanning electron microscope equipped with a low-vacuum secondary (SE) detector, a high-sensitivity back-scatter-electron (BSE) detector, an energy-dispersive-spectrometer (EDS), and a color-cathodoluminescence (color-CL) detector. The new SEM system will support a variety of research initiatives at Colby College, including: 1) understanding the physical and chemical mechanisms that weaken rocks in fault zones and help control earthquake-generating fault slip events; 2) elucidating the early evolution of our solar system as recorded in fragments of asteroids that fall to Earth as meteorites; and 3) constraining the effects past volcanic eruptions on climate and assessing the impacts of atmospheric dust deposition on the productivity of marine ecosystems. The SEM system will increase the research capabilities of faculty in the Geology Department at Colby College, and will enable ~60 undergraduate Geology majors to engage in research over the next decade. Access to the SEM will allow student users to develop cutting-edge skills that will be useful for future careers in a wide range of STEM fields. Faculty in other STEM fields also will incorporate the SEM into their teaching and research programs, thus increasing the overall impact of the new instrument. The SEM will help Geology faculty recruit and retain students from under-represented or disadvantaged backgrounds through their ongoing work the Colby Achievement Program in the Sciences—a 6-week immersive summer program for incoming first-year students from underrepresented groups who are interested in STEM majors. This award received co-funding from the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) office.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.