MRI: Acquisition of a State-of-the-Art Scanning Electron Microscope for Advanced Materials Research and Education

非技术描述：为了真正了解材料结构和其性能之间的联系，有必要使用多种分析技术在广泛的长度范围内对它们进行研究。然而，通常很难将使用各种不同专门仪器进行的实验所产生的各种研究数据准确地联系在一起，形成一幅统一的图景。通过这笔赠款购买的环境扫描电子显微镜通过将大量强大的成像和分析模式集成到一个统一的平台中，直接解决了这一挑战。该仪器带来的转化能力和实验将对俄亥俄州立大学和整个地区以材料为导向的研究和教育产生重大影响。该仪器使教育工作者能够为本地和远程学生开发关于尖端显微镜方法的新课程，以及基于互动电话会议的创新推广活动，触及年轻学习者的生活。这种显微镜带来的新的扩展模式使其有可能接触到大量的K-12学生，包括在此类活动中通常服务不足的人群，如听力受损的学生。技术描述：俄亥俄州立大学以及整个俄亥俄州的研究人员使用该显微镜的高分辨率成像、丰富的数据分析方法以及现场测试和操作的新颖组合来探索广泛的长度尺度，并为多学科材料科学研究创造先进的实验方法。多种分析模式(成像、衍射以及化学和电子性质测量)和现场样品处理能力(加热、冷却、机械应力和环境)的同时和/或精确相关的应用使新的科学知识的发现成为可能，并可能在关键材料领域取得变革性进展，包括先进功能材料、高性能结构材料和前瞻性工程生物材料。特别关注的是材料结构和组成中的介观非均质性，其研究阐明了从单个位错、颗粒亚结构和损伤引发到全尺寸器件、多晶聚集体、生物工程纤维和组织支架的重要联系。这些研究使研究人员能够填补在对原子到应用连续体中的介观现象和结构-性质关系的基本理解方面的关键空白。

Non-Technical Description:To truly understand the connections between the structure of materials and their properties, it is necessary to study them across a wide range of length scales using multiple analytical techniques. However, it is often difficult to precisely link the various lines of research data generated from experiments performed using an assortment of different specialized instruments into a single, cohesive picture. The environmental scanning electron microscope purchased through this grant directly addresses this challenge by integrating a large array of powerful imaging and analysis modalities into one unified platform. The transformational capabilities and experiments enabled by this instrument will have a major impact on materials-oriented research and education at The Ohio State University and across the region. This instrument enables educators to develop new courses on cutting-edge microscopy methods for both local and remote students, as well as innovative interactive teleconference based outreach activities that touch the lives of young learners. The new modes of outreach enabled by this microscope make it possible to reach a large number of K-12 students, including populations that are typically underserved in such activities such as hearing-impaired students.Technical Description:Researchers at The Ohio State University, as well as across the State of Ohio, use the microscope's novel combination of high-resolution imaging, data-rich analytical methods, and in-situ testing and manipulation to probe a wide range of length scales and create advanced experimental methods for multidisciplinary materials science research. The simultaneous and/or precisely correlated application of multiple analysis modalities (imaging, diffraction, plus chemical and electronic property measurements) and in-situ sample manipulation capabilities (heating, cooling, mechanical stress, and environment) empower the discovery of new scientific knowledge and make possible transformational advances in critical materials fields, including advanced functional materials, high-performance structural materials, and forward-looking engineered biomaterials. Of particular focus are meso-scale heterogeneities within a material's structure and composition, the study of which clarifies the important linkages from individual dislocations, grain substructure, and damage initiation to full-scale devices, polycrystal aggregates, and bioengineered fibers and tissue scaffolds. These studies allow researchers to fill critical gaps in the fundamental understanding of meso-scale phenomena and structure-property relationships within the atoms-to-applications continuum.