This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
The funding will support the acquisition of a high-resolution scanning electron microscope (HR SEM). The instrument will be located in a new electron microscopy facility at the University of Massachusetts Amherst that will serve both life and materials sciences. For scientists wishing to investigate the smallest levels of structure, the HR SEM has become indispensable. Not only does it possess a resolution comparable to the transmission electron microscope, preparation of samples for imaging in the microscope is straightforward. In addition to being able to image the surface of the sample, thereby revealing its topography, the instrument is also able to determine which elements are present in the structure and at what concentration. The instrument will support the on-going research of scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst as well as at the surrounding colleges (Smith, Mount Holyoke, Amherst, and Hampshire). For example, geoscientists are analyzing the composition of minerals, thereby improving understanding of the Earth; chemists and polymer scientists are investigating how to build devices, such photovoltaic cells, with superior performance by being able to manipulate components at the smallest possible scale; and biologists are elucidating how tiny filaments made by some bacteria can act as electrically conducting wires and how plant cell walls help guide cell development. All of these efforts, among many others, will be enhanced by acquisition of the HR SEM. The instrument will be used in many courses, ranging from upper level courses in theory and practice of SEM to more basic courses, designed to stimulate powers of observation and reasoning. The primary expected research outcome is the use of HR SEM data in publications. The new Central Facility will collate all such papers and will provide appropriate access on its web page. The expected educational outcomes are both conceptual (increasing understanding of SEM) and practical (increasing expertise in this methodology). The Central Facility will maintain a database on all courses taught, students served, and where possible, on the subsequent careers of student users of the instrument.
