Aquisition of a Variable Pressure Scanning Electron Microscope for Multiple Use in Research and Education

这个多学科项目将资助一种新的扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、溅射涂层机和临界点干燥机。扫描电镜将使科学家和工程师能够看到物体表面的放大倍数从400倍到10,000倍。预定购买的型号将是对新大过时的20年设备的巨大改进，这些设备要么不再以最高效率运行，要么使用过时的方法记录图像。与旧设备相比，关键的改进包括：(1)无需首先用金属物质涂覆样品即可对样品进行成像的能力，(2)倾斜和旋转的样品台，(3)大型样品室，(4)溅射涂层机（比目前的蒸发涂层机更好），以便在需要金属涂层时使用，(5)能量色散光谱仪（EDS），允许对样品进行元素分析。在不使用金属涂层的情况下成像的能力对于研究古生物学和考古标本是必不可少的，这些标本是稀有的，或者是从不允许对化石或人工制品进行任何改动的国家借来的。化学研究产品需要在不损害样品表面的情况下进行扫描，也需要在不涂覆的情况下进行成像。我们期望成像化石花，水果，种子，树叶，牙齿，骨头，石器，和实验聚合物和金属。新大的古生物学研究涉及热带非洲的植被变化、植物进化史和小型哺乳动物的进化、一些白垩纪针叶树的进化史、恐龙牙齿微磨损对饮食的影响以及鳄鱼及其亲属的进化史。考古学研究将利用新的EDS分析来自美国西南部的陶瓷文物上的釉，这可以帮助确定13世纪和14世纪各个普韦布洛人群体之间的来源区域和划定贸易路线。化学家将能够评估聚合物薄膜的测试，这些测试有可能影响从微电子到燃料电池技术等领域的发展。机械工程项目需要测试材料沉积系统，这将通过改变从计算机设计到现实的过程，对制造技术产生重大影响。这项研究产生的数字图像将用于正在进行的公共宣传。古生物学研究小组已经在为一个由美国国家科学基金会支持的大型展览提供咨询，该展览目前正在沃斯堡科学与历史博物馆进行建设。工程和化学技术将通过与商业界建立的联系转移给公众

EAR-0240251JacobsThis multidisciplinary project will fund a new scanning electron microscope (SEM), sputter coater, and critical point dryer. The SEM will enable scientists and engineers to see the surfaces of objects at magnifications ranging from 400X to 10,000X. The model slated for purchase will be a vast improvement over SMU's out-dated 20-year-old equipment, which either no longer operates at maximum efficiency or uses antiquated methods for documenting images. Critical improvements over the old equipment include (1) the ability to image specimens without first coating them with a metallic substance, (2) a sample stage that tilts and rotates, (3) a large sample chamber, (4) a sputter coater (better than the current evaporative coater) for use when metallic coating is necessary, and (5) an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), which allows elemental analysis of samples. The ability to image without applying a metallic coating is essential for study of paleontological and archaeological specimens that are rare or on loan from nations that do not permit any alteration of fossils or artifacts. Products of chemical research that require scanning without compromising the sample's surface also require imaging without coating. We anticipate imaging fossil flowers, fruit, seeds, leaves, teeth, bones, stone tools, and experimental polymers and metals. Paleontological research at SMU addresses vegetation change, floral evolutionary history, and small mammal evolution in tropical Africa, evolutionary history of some Cretaceous conifers, the dietary implications of tooth micro-wear on dinosaur teeth, and the evolutionary history of crocodiles and their relatives. Research in archaeology will make use of the new EDS to analyze the glaze on ceramic artifacts from the American Southwest, which can help determine source area and delimit trade routes among various Puebloan groups during the 13th and 14th centuries. Chemists will be able to evaluate tests on polymer films that have the potential to affect development in areas from microelectronics to fuel cell technology. Mechanical engineering projects require testing of material deposition systems that will is significantly impact manufacturing technology by changing the process of going from computer design to reality. The digital images produced by this research will be used in ongoing public outreach. The paleontological research group is already consulting on a major NSF-supported exhibit currently under construction at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. Engineering and chemical technologies will transfer to the public via established ties with the business community.***