MRI: Acquisition of a cathodoluminescence (CL) detector for nanoscale defect and impurity analysis in a shared-user facility

格鲁吉亚理工学院（格鲁吉亚理工学院）是NSF支持的东南纳米技术基础设施走廊（SENIC）的成员，这是一项促进纳米技术进步的倡议。设计用于纳米级研究级阴极发光检测器安装在格鲁吉亚技术共享用户分析设施，可供学术研究人员，小型和大型公司以及NSF支持的教育工作者和公众培训活动使用。服务不足的少数民族，女性和助理教授依靠这种仪器，以进一步推进他们在纳米技术的进步。格鲁吉亚理工学院以外的研究人员使用了该探测器，包括克拉克亚特兰大大学（一所历史悠久的黑人大学）和格鲁吉亚大学系统的成员，即肯尼索州立大学、格鲁吉亚大学和附近的格鲁吉亚州立大学（一所为少数民族服务的机构）。格鲁吉亚州内的其他机构通过称为格鲁吉亚研究联盟核心交换的科学仪器共享项目访问探测器。研究项目、学术课程、培训和推广活动与这一敏感的探测器相结合，为女性和少数民族学生掌握技术技能提供了机会。仅通过学术指导接触这些技术的学生人数每年就超过100人。领导培训活动的主要研究员拥有30多年的学生和研究人员实践培训经验。 阴极射线发光（CL）发生在天然和合成半导体材料在高能电子轰击期间发光（发光）时。发射光的强度和波长可用于测量半导体材料中缺陷的物理结构、化学成分和性质。当CL检测器耦合到电子显微镜时，测量可能低至纳米（10^（-9）m）尺度。这种新的方法是有用的广泛的科学和工程应用，包括：1。确定宽带隙半导体（例如GaN）的光学性质和缺陷结构，用于改进半导体制造和性质; 2.优化陶瓷多晶材料（例如SiC）的发光性能以用于电子器件的烧结; 3.测量辐射对地外物质的影响，以便规划未来的空间探索;研究自然物质的结构和成分，以预测地球上重要的经济矿产资源，并完善地球的气候和构造模型。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) is a member of the NSF-supported Southeastern Nanotechnology Infrastructure Corridor (SENIC), an initiative for invigorating advances in nanotechnology. The designed-for-nanoscale research-grade cathodoluminescence detector is installed in a Georgia Tech shared-user analytical facility accessible to academic researchers, small and large companies, and NSF-supported training activities for educators and the public. Underserved minority, female, and assistant professors rely on this instrument, to further their advancements in nanotechnology. Researchers external to Georgia Tech employing the detector include those at Clark Atlanta University, a historically black university, and members of the University System of Georgia, namely Kennesaw State University, University of Georgia and nearby Georgia State University, a minority-serving institution. Other institutions within the state of Georgia access the detector through the scientific instrument-sharing project called the Georgia Research Alliance Core Exchange. The research projects, academic courses, training, and outreach exercises that tie in this sensitive detector provide opportunities for female and minority students to master technical skills. The number of students exposed to the techniques through academic instruction alone is well over 100 per year. The principal investigator leading the training activities has over 30 years’ experience with hands-on training of students and researchers. Cathodoluminescence (CL) occurs when natural and synthetic semiconducting materials emit light (luminescence) during high energy electron bombardment. The intensity and wavelength of the emitted light can be used to measure the physical structure, chemical composition, and nature of defects in a semiconducting material. When a CL detector is coupled to an electron microscope, measurements are possible down to the nanometer (10^(-9) m) scale. This novel approach is useful for a wide range of scientific and engineering applications, including: 1. determining the optical properties and defect structure of wide-bandgap semiconductors (e.g. GaN) for improving semiconductor fabrication and properties; 2. optimizing luminescence properties of ceramic polycrystalline materials (e.g. SiC) for miniaturizing electronic devices; 3. measuring the effects of radiation on extraterrestrial materials for the purpose of planning future space exploration, and 4. studying the structure and composition of natural materials for predicting the terrestrial occurrence of economically critical mineral resources, and refining climate and tectonic models of Earth.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.