U.S./Africa Materials Institute

拟议中的美国/非洲材料研究所将重点发展非洲材料科学家与美国同行之间的合作。虚拟材料研究所将为材料设计、合成和表征领域的研究合作提供普林斯顿的环境。然而，该中心还将协调与美国其他大学的互动，这些大学包括：哈佛大学、布朗大学、凯斯西大学、俄亥俄州立大学、加州大学圣巴巴拉分校（UCSB）和康考迪亚大学。总共有8名非洲科学家和他们的学生将获得资助（每年），与他们在美国的同行进行3到6个月的交流。这些科学家中的一半将在普林斯顿大学工作，而另一半将在参与的美国大学工作。该研究所将专注于材料设计领域的研究和教育。它将致力于促进非洲和美国经济发展的领域。这将包括：用于下一代发光设备和太阳能电池的有机薄膜材料研究；用于开关和生物医学应用的微机电系统，以及用于经济适用房和材料生产/合成的异质材料。美国/非洲材料研究所将使用基于网络的工具提供对材料期刊、虚拟实验室和教室以及网络直播专题讨论会和讲习班的访问。将开发教学模块，以支持非洲和美国材料科学家和工程师在材料选择和设计、结构材料、微机电系统和材料特性方面的教育。基于网络的教学模块将与Internet 2一起开发，并在万维网上免费提供。为了促进美国和非洲科学家之间的互动，研究所将与非洲材料研究协会和美国材料研究协会密切合作，在非洲和美国组织联合专题讨论会/讲习班。该项目每年将在美国组织一次主要讲习班。该研究所还将为至少10名美国材料研究人员和研究生参加非洲MRS会议提供财政支持。同样数量的非洲合作者将被支持参加在美国举行的材料研究学会会议。在这些访问期间，研究所将组织信息会议，旨在使更多的美国和非洲研究人员了解美国和非洲在材料研究和教育方面的新兴合作。研究所将由咨询委员会指导，该委员会将包括来自非洲、南美、欧洲、加拿大和美国的代表。咨询委员会将每年召开一次会议，评估研究所的表现和未来需求/方向。该研究所将由普林斯顿大学的woll Soboyejo教授领导。Soboyejo教授将得到一名行政经理和一名秘书的协助，他们将协助协调研究所的活动。普林斯顿大学的其他合作者包括David Srolovitz教授、Zhigang Suo教授、George Scherer教授、Tim Baker教授和Antoine Kahn教授。在其他大学，合作者将包括Arthur Heuer教授（Case Western）、Anthony Evans教授（UCSB）、Tianjin Lu教授（Cambridge）、John Hutchinson教授（Harvard）、Alan Needleman教授（Brown）、Clyde Briant教授（Brown）、Alfred Soboyejo教授（俄亥俄州立大学）和Primus Mtenga教授（FAMU/FSU）。为了让更多的美国学生接触到国际合作的过程，该研究所每年将支持4名研究生和4名本科生从事拟议研究的各个方面。这些学生将在访问各自在美国的大学期间与非洲访问者密切合作。他们还将获得资助，参加由该研究所在非洲和美国组织的专题讨论会/讲习班。这些学生将包括来自代表性不足群体的少数民族和非少数民族学生，以及女本科生/研究生。所有美国合作者将每月召开一次电话会议。这些会议将为讨论新兴合作提供一个论坛。中心还将每六个月发行一次通讯，介绍虚拟学院的活动亮点。与往常一样，所有外联和教育活动的结果将使用国家科学基金会提供的指标进行记录。美国/非洲国际材料研究所将在非洲和美国的材料科学家之间建立强有力的合作关系。科学家们将致力于能够影响全球经济发展的小组项目。这些包括：经济适用房的基础设施材料；用于价值数万亿美元的金属熔化工业的炉窑壁内衬材料；用于未来发光器件和太阳能电池的有机电子材料，以及与微电子和微机电器件相关的可靠小型结构。每年，16名非洲科学家将在美国与他们的合作者一起工作9周。访问科学家将包括来自非洲大学和研究机构的教授、研究科学家和研究生。大约一半的科学家将访问普林斯顿大学的美国合作者，而另一半将访问哈佛大学、布朗大学、西北大学、俄亥俄州立大学、加州大学圣巴巴拉分校和佛罗里达州立大学/佛罗里达农工大学的美国合作者。在访问期间，科学家们将研究小组项目的实验或理论部分。他们还将接受使用现代材料表征或计算设施的培训。访问结束后，科学家们将返回非洲，继续开展在非洲可以完成的工作。每位科学家将在数年内（2-5年期间）返回美国，直到完成重要的研究并在国际期刊上发表。该项目还将在国际合作过程中整合美国本科生/研究生和博士后研究人员的教育和培训。普林斯顿大学和俄亥俄州立大学将分别资助至少四名美国研究生、四名美国本科生和一名博士后。这些学生将参加未来的美国/非洲研讨会和会议。他们还将参与国际交流访问，在此期间，他们将与非洲大学的合作者和学生互动。在材料教育领域，该计划将开发基于网络的材料设计和表征模块。这些教学模块包括：材料选择和设计；先进结构材料；工程材料的机械性能和材料表征。这些模块将在万维网上广泛提供。它们还将被整合到普林斯顿大学和非洲合作大学的本科和研究生课程教学中。最后，年度会议将加强美国和非洲在材料研究和教育领域的互动。讲习班还将提供机会，传播该方案将产生的新知识和教育工具。

The proposed U.S./Africa Materials Institute will focus on the development of collaborations between materials scientists in Africa and the counterparts in the U.S. The Virtual Materials Institute will provide a Princeton setting for research collaborations in the areas of materials design, synthesis and characterization. However, the center will also coordinate interactions with other universities in the U.S. These include: Harvard, Brown, Case Western University, The Ohio State University, the University of California at Santa Barbara (UCSB) and Concordia University. A total of 8 African scientists and their students will be supported (per year) to spend between 3 months and 6 months interacting with their counterparts in the U.S. Half of these scientists will be based at Princeton University, while the other half will be based at participating U.S. universities. The institute will focus on research and education in the area of materials design. It will work on areas that can promote economic development in Africa and the U.S. This will include: materials research on organic thin films for the next generation of light-emitting devices and solar cells; micro-electro-mechanical systems for switching and biomedical applications, and heterogeneous materials for affordable housing and materials production/synthesis.The U.S./Africa Materials Institute will use web-based tools to provide access to materials journals, virtual laboratories and classrooms, and web-cast symposia and workshops. Teaching modules will be developed to support the education of African and U.S. materials scientists and engineers in materials selection and design, structural materials, micro-electro-mechanical systems, and materials characterization. The web-based teaching modules will be developed in conjunction with Internet 2, and made freely available on the world-wide-web.In an effort to promote the interactions between U.S. and African scientists, the Institute will work closely with the African Materials Research Society and the Materials Research Society in the U.S. to organize joint symposia/workshops in Africa and the U.S. One major workshop will be organized in the U.S. during each year of the program. The Institute will also provide financial support for at least 10 U.S. materials researchers and graduate students to attend Africa MRS Meetings. A similar number of visiting African collaborators will be supported to attend the Materials Research Society meetings in the U.S. During these visits, the Institute will organize information sessions designed to expose a wider range of U.S. and African researchers to emerging U.S./Africa collaborations in materials research and education.The Institute will be guided by an Advisory Board that will include representatives from Africa, South America, Europe, Canada and the U.S. The Advisory Board will meet once a year to evaluate the performance and future needs/directions of the Institute. The Institute will be directed by Prof. Wole Soboyejo at Princeton University. Prof. Soboyejo will be supported by an Administrative Manager and a secretary, who will help to coordinate the activities of the Institute. The other participating collaborators at Princeton University include Prof. David Srolovitz, Prof. Zhigang Suo, Prof. George Scherer, Prof. Tim Baker and Prof. Antoine Kahn. At other universities, the collaborators will include Prof. Arthur Heuer (Case Western), Prof. Anthony Evans (UCSB), Prof. Tianjin Lu (Cambridge), Prof. John Hutchinson (Harvard), Prof. Alan Needleman (Brown), Prof. Clyde Briant (Brown), Prof. Alfred Soboyejo (The Ohio State University) and Prof. Primus Mtenga (FAMU/FSU).In an effort to expose more U.S. students to the process of international collaboration, the Institute will support 4 graduate students and 4 undergraduate students per year to work on various aspects of the proposed research. The students will work closely with the African visitors during visits to their respective universities in the U.S. They will also be funded to attend the symposia/ workshops that will be organized by the Institute in Africa and the U.S. The students will include minority and non-minority students from under-represented groups, as well as women under-graduate/graduate students. All the U.S. collaborators will meet by teleconference once a month. The meetings will provide a forum for discussions on emerging collaborations. A center newsletter will also be issued once every six months to provide highlights of the activities of the Virtual Institute. As usual, the outcomes of all the outreach and education activities will be recorded using the metrics provided by the NSF.%%%The U.S./Africa International Materials Institute will develop strong collaborations between materials scientists in Africa and the U.S. The scientists will work on group projects that can impact global economic development. These include: infrastructure materials for affordable housing; materials for lining the walls of furnaces and kilns that are used in the trillion-dollar metal melting industry; organic electronic materials for future light-emitting devices and solar cells, and reliable small structures that are relevant to microelectronics and micro-electro-mechanical devices. Each year, 16 African scientists will spend 9 weeks working with their collaborators in the U.S. The visiting scientists will include professors, research scientists and graduate students from African universities and research institutes. About half of the scientists will visit U.S. collaborators at Princeton University, while the other half will visit U.S. collaborators at Harvard University, Brown University, Northwestern University, The Ohio State University, the University of California-Santa Barbara, and Florida State University/Florida A&M University. During the visits, the scientists will work on experimental or theoretical components of group projects. They will also be trained in the use of modern materials characterization or computational facilities. Following the visits, the scientists will return to Africa to continue with the aspects of the work that can be done in Africa. Each scientist will return to the U.S. over a multi-year (2-5 year period) until a significant body of research is done and published in international journals.The program will also integrate education and training of U.S. undergraduate/graduate students and post-doctoral researchers in the process of international collaboration. Each, at least four U.S. graduate students, four U.S. undergraduate students and one post-doctoral research will be supported by the program at Princeton University and the Ohio State University. These students will participate in future U.S./Africa workshops and conferences. They will also be involved in international exchange visits, during which they will interact with collaborators and students at African universities.In the area of materials education, the program will develop web-based modules on materials design and characterization. These will include teaching modules on: materials selection and design; advanced structural materials; mechanical properties of engineered materials, and materials characterization. The modules will be made widely available on the world-wide-web. They will also be integrated into the teaching of undergraduate and graduate courses at Princeton University and collaborating African universities. Finally, annual that will develop increased interactions between the U.S. and Africa in the areas of materials research and education. The workshops will also provide an opportunity to disseminate the new knowledge and educational tools that will emerge from the program.