REU Site: Materials for Society

非技术描述：材料科学是从现代电子到时尚、安全和可回收包装、更快和省油的汽车、新型能源发电和储存、航空航天推进系统、经济适用房、医疗工程、传感器、纳米技术和微型机械等一切背后的使能技术。科学和政策制定中最令人兴奋的方向之一是可持续发展，其重点是节能、储存和可再生生产。这个本科生研究体验(REU)网站的目标是提供真实的、密集的研究团队体验，同时探索主题为“为社会提供材料”的活动。通过高度参与度高的教师导师使用行业和研究生院重视的最先进的生产、表征和测试设备，在各种材料相关领域进行培训，学生们可以更好地为未来的STEM就业做好准备。吸收来自不同学科的导师，使学生能够培养在学术和工业研究环境中出类拔萃所需的技能，在这些环境中，跨学科团队是标准的。该网站得到了代表人数不足的群体的高度参与，特别是女性和西班牙裔学生，并帮助所有参与者发展成为专业人士。学生们最终会在一年一度的夏季研究会议上展示他们的研究成果。该网站还包含教师研究体验(RET)部分，有助于将研究与教育相结合，并使学生和教师都受益倍增。技术细节：这个为期9周的REU网站的目标是为本科生和教师提供密集的研究团队体验，使用最先进的设施，同时探索主题为“为社会提供材料”的活动。用于提供这种体验的项目是高度跨学科的，使学生能够接触到科学和工程的前沿。这些活动一般可分为四大类中的一个(或多个)：能源生产(如太阳能电池、磁性形状记忆合金、热电材料)、储能(如钠离子电池、建筑系统)、节能(如碳纳米电子学)或与材料加工-建模-表征有关的其他社会挑战(如材料基因组倡议)。参与者有自己的个性化项目，但也融入了校园范围的跨学科暑期研究社区，培训他们既能有效地进行跨学科交流，又能更清楚地理解对自己工作至关重要的概念。学生们还参加了一些关于实验室安全、图书馆资源、知识产权、伦理和交流的补充研讨会；他们最终在一年一度的爱达荷州本科生研究会议(ICUR)上展示了他们的结果。综合评估计划被用来衡量参与者的学习和成长情况，以及他们对REU经验的信心和满意度，以及影响他们对实验室环境和研究总体感知的因素。特别令人感兴趣的是参与者在暑期研究经历中形成的关系的发展和好处。为此，使用社交网络分析(SNA)方法来探索和描述参与者在其研究经验过程中形成的关系和关系网络。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: Materials science is the enabling technology behind everything from modern electronics to fashion, safe and recyclable packaging, faster and fuel-efficient vehicles, novel energy generation and storage, aerospace propulsion systems, affordable housing, medical engineering, sensors, nanotechnology, and micromachines. One of the most exciting directions in science and policy-making is sustainability, with its emphasis on energy conservation, storage, and renewable production. The objective of this Research Experiences for Undergraduate (REU) Site is to provide an authentic, intensive research-team experience while exploring activities within the theme “materials for society.” Students are better prepared for employment as tomorrow’s STEM-engaged workforce via training in a variety of materials-related fields by highly engaged faculty mentors using state-of-the-art production, characterization, and testing equipment valued by industry and graduate schools. Inclusion of mentors from various disciplines enables students to develop skills needed to excel in both academic and industrial research environments, where interdisciplinary teams are standard. The Site enjoys a high level of participation from underrepresented groups, especially women and Hispanic students, and helps all participants develop as professionals. Students ultimately present their results at the annual summer research conference. The Site incorporates a Research Experience for Teachers (RET) component as well, aiding the integration of research with education and multiplying the benefit to both students and teachers. A web resource including teacher-developed lesson plans is maintained as a resource for students, teachers, and faculty everywhere.TECHNICAL DETAILS: The objective of this 9-week REU Site is to provide undergraduates and teachers an intensive research-team experience with state-of-the-art facilities while exploring activities within the theme “materials for society.” The projects used to deliver this experience are highly interdisciplinary, allowing students to be exposed to the forefront of science and engineering. The activities can be generally categorized into one (or more) of four broad categories: energy generation (e.g., solar cells, magnetic shape-memory alloys, thermoelectrics), energy storage (e.g., sodium-ion batteries, building systems), energy conservation (e.g., carbon nanoelectronics), or other societal challenges associated with materials processing-modeling-characterization (e.g., materials genome initiative). Participants have their own individualized projects but are also integrated within a campus-wide interdisciplinary summer research community, training them to both communicate effectively across disciplines and more clearly understand the concepts central to their own work. Students also participate in a number of supplemental workshops on lab safety, library resources, intellectual property, ethics, and communication; and they ultimately present their results at the annual Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research (ICUR). A comprehensive assessment program is used to gauge the learning and growth of participants as well as their confidence, satisfaction with the REU experience, and the factors which influence their perceptions of the lab environment and research generally. Of particular interest is the development and benefits of the relationships that participants form during their summer research experiences. Toward that end, a social network analysis (SNA) approach is used to explore and characterize the relationships and relational networks that participants form over the course of their research experience.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.