Equipment: MRI: Track 1: Acquisition of SAXS/WAXS/GISAXS/GIWAXS instrument with versatile, controlled sample environments

该重大研究仪器（MRI）奖支持购买最先进的X射线仪器，用于广泛的聚合物，陶瓷和混合有机-无机材料的散射研究，以满足德克萨斯州A M大学，德克萨斯州，美国中南部地区学术机构和工业合作者的研究和教学需求。 X射线仪器能够在暴露于不同的环境条件（例如，温度、湿度、受控的气体环境）并经受外部刺激（例如，机械变形、光）。 这种先进仪器的功能提供了关于结构-性质-功能关系的关键信息，并使下一代系统的合理设计与自组装，导电性，机械适应性和流变行为有关，影响医疗保健，能源，运输，营养和消费品领域。该仪器位于TAMU软物质设施（SoMF）中，这是一个多用户设施，为德克萨斯州和其他州的学术界和工业界的用户提供服务。X射线仪器加强了德克萨斯州和美国中南部参与少数群体服务机构的研究和教育，因为本科生和研究生使用新仪器，并通过用户讲习班传播他们的成果。 通过这些经验获得的知识被纳入课程，丰富了整个校园的教育。X射线仪器具有高通量、大视场成像能力，能够在透射和掠入射模式下收集广角和小角度散射数据，并配备了一个大型样品室和多个原位台，可控制室环境，以研究外部刺激对样品的影响（机械载荷、外加场、样品膨胀或与蒸汽的化学反应）。成像模块提供10微米分辨率，使得能够对分层结构的多组分材料进行X射线透射成像，然后聚焦于用于X射线散射测量的选定区域，以使得能够测量材料在不同环境和刺激下的结构演变。该研究工具对于下一代聚合物和纳米复合材料、有机-无机混合材料、水泥可持续基础设施材料以及用于储能和光电的无机材料的开发至关重要。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award supports the acquisition of a state-of-the-art X-ray instrument for scattering studies of a wide range of polymer, ceramic, and hybrid organic-inorganic materials to meet the research and teaching needs of the Texas A&M University, regional academic institutions in TX, South Central US, and industrial collaborators. The X-ray instrument enables continuous monitoring of materials nanostructure on the scale from 0.1 to 300 nm upon exposure to diverse environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, humidity, controlled gaseous environments) and subjected to external stimuli (e.g., mechanical deformation, light). The capabilities of this advanced instrument provide critical information on the structure-property-function relationships and enable rational design of next generation systems related to self-assembly, conductivity, mechanical adaptivity, and rheological behavior, impacting the areas of healthcare, energy, transportation, nutrition, and consumer products. The instrument is housed in the TAMU Soft Matter Facility (SoMF), a multi-user facility that serves users from academia and industry in TX and other states. The X-ray instrument enhances research and education at participating minority-serving institutions in TX and South Central US as undergraduate and graduate students use the new instrument and disseminate their results through the user workshops. The knowledge gained through these experiences is incorporated into courses, enriching education across campuses. The X-ray instrument features high-throughput, large-field-of-view imaging capabilities, the ability to collect wide-angle and small-angle scattering data in transmission and grazing incidence modes, and is equipped with a large sample chamber and a number of in situ stages that allow control of the chamber environment for the investigation of the effects of external stimuli on the sample (mechanical loads, applied fields, sample swelling, or chemical reaction to vapors). The imaging module provides a ten-micron resolution enabling X-ray transmission imaging of the hierarchically structured multicomponent materials and then focusing on selected regions for X-ray scattering measurements to enable measurements of materials’ structural evolution under different environments and stimuli. The research instrument is essential for the development of next-generation polymers and nanocomposites, organic-inorganic hybrid materials, cementitious sustainable infrastructure materials, as well as inorganic materials for energy storage and optoelectronics.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.