MRI: Acquisition of Nanoindentation System for the Enhancement of Interdisciplinary Research in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez

0922994帕多瓦尼该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。“技术总结：在这个纳米技术驱动的时代，有能力了解材料在纳米尺度上的力学行为不仅是理想的，但需要。纳米压痕是一种用于此类表征的最先进技术，因此，为了支持波多黎各马亚圭斯大学（UPRM）正在进行的一些材料研究计划，拟议的项目旨在获得Nano Indenter G200系统。该仪器将是有史以来第一个纳米压痕单位将在波多黎各。该系统的获得将使拟议的跨学科团队能够评估新开发的聚合物和金属基纳米复合材料与电子器件的集成能力，研究玻璃纤维增强聚合物降解和老化的实际机制，评估高耐磨铝基复合材料的摩擦机械性能，定义了纳米压印光刻的基本材料机械要求，并表征了无铅焊接系统、VO 2薄膜、纳米结构膜和氧化物纳米支架中金属间化合物的机械性能。所要求的纳米压痕系统的更广泛的影响取决于改进的基础设施和/或最先进的设备，这些设备将可用于UPRM各种科学和工程领域的大量西班牙裔研究生和本科生的研究和培训活动，以及加强与其他机构正在进行的研究合作。多年来，科学家们已经了解到，材料的性质是其原子排列的直接结果，为了充分了解材料的能力和潜力，需要在纳米尺度上进行研究（大约比人类头发的宽度小10，000倍）。本项目拟购买一台Nano Indenter G200系统，这是一种研究纳米级材料力学行为的最先进仪器。该纳米压痕系统将支持波多黎各-马亚圭斯大学（UPRM）正在进行的一些研究活动，并将成为波多黎各提供的第一台此类仪器。收购nanoindenter不仅将显着提高目前的UPRM设施，但它也将允许关键的机械性能研究，如纳米复合材料的电子应用，玻璃纤维增强聚合物，高耐磨强度铝复合材料，纳米结构膜和氧化物纳米支架进行。作为这些研究的结果，具有改进性能的先进材料有望被开发用于新型纳米技术应用，如燃料电池，传感器和/或生物医学设备。除了对现有研究基础设施的明显影响外，纳米压痕系统还将有助于在各种科学和工程领域培训大量西班牙裔研究生和本科生，这是提议团队跨学科性质的直接结果。最后，该仪器将支持与其他机构正在进行的研究合作，扩大在UPRM创建的快速增长的材料研究网络。

0922994PadovaniU. of Puerto Rico Mayaguez"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."Technical Summary: In this nanotechnology-driven era, having the capability to understand the materials mechanical behavior at the nanometer-scale is not only ideal, but required. Nanoindentation is a state-of-the-art technique used for such characterization and therefore, in order to support a number of ongoing materials research initiatives at the University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez (UPRM), the proposed project seeks to acquire a Nano Indenter G200 system. The instrument solicited will be the first-ever nanoindentation unit to be available in Puerto Rico. The acquisition of this system will enable the proposed interdisciplinary team to assess the integration capability of newly-developed polymer- and metal-based nanocomposite materials into electronic devices, construe the actual mechanisms involved in the degradation and aging of glass-fiber reinforced polymers, evaluate tribo-mechanical properties of high-wear strength aluminum matrix composites, define the fundamental materials mechanical requirements for nanoimprint lithography, and characterize the mechanical properties of intermetallic compounds in Pb-free soldering systems, VO2 thin films, nanostructured membranes, and oxide nanoscaffolds. The broader impact of the requested nanoindentation system hinges in the improved infrastructure and/or state-of-the-art equipment that will be available for research and training activities of a large number of Hispanic graduate and undergraduate students in a variety of science and engineering fields at UPRM as well as on the reinforcement of ongoing research collaborations with other institutions.Layman Summary: Over the years, scientists have learned that the properties of materials are a direct result of their atomic arrangement and that, in order to fully understand the materials capabilities and potentials, these need to be studied at the nanometer scale (approximately 10,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair). This project proposes to acquire a Nano Indenter G200 system, a state-of-the-art instrument to study the mechanical behavior of materials at such nanometer level. This nanoindentation system will support a number of ongoing research activities at the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (UPRM) and will represent the first instrument of its kind to be available in Puerto Rico. The acquisition of the nanoindenter will not only significantly enhance the current UPRM facilities, but it will also allow for critical mechanical property studies to be performed on materials such as nanocomposites for electronic applications, glass-fiber reinforced polymers, high-wear strength aluminum composites, nanostructured membranes, and oxide nanoscaffolds. As a result of these studies, advanced materials with improved properties are expected to be developed for novel nanotechnology applications like fuel cells, sensors, and/or biomedical devices. Besides the apparent impact on the existing research infrastructure, the nanoindentation system will also be instrumental in the training of a large number of Hispanic graduate and undergraduate students in a variety of science and engineering fields as a direct result of the interdisciplinary nature of the proposing team. Finally, this instrument will support ongoing research collaborations with other institutions expanding the fast growing materials research network created at UPRM.