This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public law 111-5).

The Xavier University Partnership for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) focuses on nanoscale imaging systems research in partnership with the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at New York University (NYU) to develop a strong materials science research core at Xavier and build a diverse pipeline of materials researchers. The research activities center around four thrust areas: improvements in growth processes for thin film lithium phosphate oxynitride batteries, the development of novel materials for enhancing magnetic resonance imaging, the development of atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques in the probing of the surface morphology and topology of cancer stem cells, and the study of polymorphic phase transitions in solids via AFM based techniques. This PREM will play a significant role in the development of courses leading to a Materials Science track in the ACS-certified Chemistry undergraduate program at Xavier University. In addition, the PREM will establish several pre-college, undergraduate, and graduate student activities to address the STEM pipeline issue with respect to African American students.

The proposed research will lead to advances in the field of nanoscale imaging, specifically for materials for energy, and biomedical applications. The Xavier- NYU PREM goal is to increase the number of minority students who pursue graduate degrees in materials science by focusing on undergraduates as well as by engaging high school students in materials science related hands-on activities through their nationally recognized K-12 summer prep program, the Summer Science Academy. Xavier faculty and undergraduate student teams will visit NYU for collaborative research and NYU faculty and graduate students will visit Xavier. This offers graduate students from NYU the opportunity to mentor and teach undergraduates at Xavier in an effort to further prepare and acculturate students from majority institutions to the issues facing students from underrepresented groups.

Agency
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Institute
Division of Materials Research (DMR)
Type
Standard Grant (Standard)
Application #
0934111
Program Officer
Charles E. Bouldin
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
2009-09-01
Budget End
2014-08-31
Support Year
Fiscal Year
2009
Total Cost
$3,000,000
Indirect Cost
Name
Xavier University of Louisiana
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
New Orleans
State
LA
Country
United States
Zip Code
70125