Inter-American Materials Collaboration in Synthesis, Processing and Atomic-Scale Characterization of Nanostructured Materials

这个美洲材料合作组织汇集了三个小组，分别由亚利桑那州立大学（ASU）的大卫史密斯、墨西哥圣刘易斯波托西波托西科学技术研究所（IPICyT）的Humberto Terrones和巴西里约热内卢天主教大学（PUC-Rio）的Guillermo索洛尔扎诺领导。高度互补的研究工作的总体重点是纳米结构材料的合成，加工和原子级表征。这些活动包括基于Al、Ga、B和Si的纳米级氮化物颗粒的合成，以及金属基陶瓷增强纳米复合材料（PUC-Rio）、填充磁性金属合金的碳纳米管的生长（IPICyT-Mexico）以及研究包含称为磁体的磁铁矿晶体链的趋磁细菌（里约热内卢联邦大学）。这些不同的纳米结构材料的特点是使用先进的透射电子显微镜（TEM）设施在亚利桑那州立大学。高分辨率电子显微镜和小探针显微分析用于确定原子尺度下的微观结构和元素组成，电子全息术用于研究磁性纳米结构的磁响应和微观结构。来自巴西和墨西哥的交换学生和博士后工作者在亚利桑那州立大学花了很长时间参加TEM实验，并在先进的表征方法方面获得了宝贵的经验。ASU的参与者前往巴西和墨西哥的伙伴机构，观察和参与材料合成和处理工作，并举办TEM表征讲习班。所有与会者合作组织了一次题为“纳米结构系统的原子尺度控制和表征”的专题讨论会，作为将于2005年在里约热内卢举行的巴西材料研究学会会议的一部分。总体而言，这一合作项目有助于促进国际交流与合作，并增加教育和培训机会。该奖项由材料研究部，国际科学与工程办公室以及数学和物理科学局多学科活动办公室支持。

This Inter-American Materials Collaboration brings together three groups led by David Smith at Arizona State University (ASU), Humberto Terrones at the Instituto Potosino de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica (IPICyT), San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and Guillermo Solorzano at the Pontificia Universidade Catolica-Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), Brazil. The overall focus of the highly complementary research efforts is the synthesis, processing and atomic-scale characterization of nanostructured materials. These activities include the synthesis of nanoscale nitride particles based on Al, Ga, B and Si, as well as metal-matrix ceramic-reinforced nanocomposites (PUC-Rio), the growth of carbon nanotubes filled with magnetic metallic alloys (IPICyT-Mexico) and the study of magnetotactic bacteria containing chains of magnetite crystals known as magnetosomes (Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro). These various nanostructured materials are characterized using the advanced transmission electron microscope (TEM) facilities available at ASU. High-resolution electron microscopy and small-probe microanalysis are used to determine microstructure and elemental composition at the atomic scale, and electron holography is used to study the magnetic response and microstructure of the magnetic nanostructures.Exchange students and postdoctoral workers from Brazil and Mexico spend extended periods of time at ASU participating in the TEM experiments and gaining invaluable experience in advanced characterization methods. The ASU participants travel to the partner institutions in Brazil and Mexico to observe and participate in the materials synthesis and processing efforts, and also to conduct workshops on TEM characterization. All participants cooperate in organizing a symposium on the topic of "Atomic-Scale Control and Characterization of Nanostructured Systems" as part of the Brazilian Materials Research Society meeting to be held in Rio de Janeiro during 2005. Overall, this collaborative project serves to promote international exchange and cooperation and enable enhanced education and training opportunities. This award is supported by the Division of Materials Research, the Office of International Science and Engineering, and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities in the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences.