With this Chemical Bonding Center (CBC) Phase I, Step II award, the Division of Chemistry and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate jointly support the research of Nicola A. Spaldin, of the University of California at Santa Barbara, who will lead a collaborative of researchers from UCSB, the University of Houston, Ohio State University, and Carnegie Mellon University. This CBC brings together chemists and material scientists with the goal of using the principles of chemical bonding to achieve the rational design of multifunctional materials. In phase I of the project, the CBC team, with expertise in chemical synthesis, structural characterization, thin film growth, and high level computation, will focus on polar bonding in solids to design and synthesize polar solids exhibiting interesting electrical and magnetic properties. The long-term goal of this CBC will be to combine the exceptional properties of newly designed polar solids with additional functionalities in order to rationally design and prepare "smart" materials. In addition to the fundamental understanding and technological breakthroughs that will result from this CBC at the interface of chemistry and materials science, an extensive outreach program will enhance the public's appreciation of chemistry as a major driving force in modern innovation.
Chemical Bonding Centers are designed to focus innovative collaborative efforts that address a "big problem" which will lead to a major advance in chemistry or at the interface of chemistry and other sciences and will have the potential to attract broad scientific and public interest.
