The proposed high-resolution scanning electron microscope (SEM) will create a multiuser electron microscopy materials research facility affiliated with the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Center for Nanoscale Materials and Biointegration (CNMB) and the UAB Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE). The facility will support a number of materials-related, multidisciplinary research and education activities involving investigators in the departments of Materials Science, Physics, Biomedical Engineering, and Prostodontics and Biomaterials, and foster collaborations through partnerships with Alabama State University (ASU), NSF-Materials World Network with Technical University of Lodz (Poland) and and the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez. Cutting-edge research at UAB is focused on nanostructured, compositionally-graded, multiphase polymeric, metallic and ceramic materials for automotive, military, medical implants, dental and biomedical tissue engineering applications. Progress in the understanding of fundamental aspects of the synthesis, processing, and structure of these materials is contingent upon our ability to quantitatively analyze them at multiple scales. A high-resolution scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer is a critical tool for meeting this need. At least 7 graduate and undergraduate courses in Materials Science and Engineering, Biomedical Engineering and Physics will use the instrument. Additionally, approximately 60 faculty and graduate students will be trained to independently use the instrument. Graduate students from other departments, including Biology, Physics and Chemistry, will also use the SEM in their research. Approximately 35 undergraduate students will utilize this instrument through funded research projects, the UAB Science and Technology Honors Program, departmental Honors programs, Senior Design and NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates, which has an overall participation rate of women and minorities of 57%. The instrument will also be used to raise the awareness of materials science, nanotechnology and engineering among K-12 students, teachers, and the general public through our NSF-RET site, Engineering Open House and Nanotechnology day at McWane Science Center in Birmingham. The MSE and CNMB provides necessary infrastructure and long-term support for SEM system operations, accommodation of multiple users, and the initiation of new projects at local, national, and international levels.
Layman Summary: Cutting-edge research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is focused on nanostructured, compositionally-graded, multiphase polymeric, metallic and ceramic materials for automotive, military, medical implants, dental and biomedical tissue engineering applications. Progress in the understanding of fundamental aspects of the synthesis, processing, and structure of these materials depends upon our ability to quantitatively analyze their structures at multiple scales, and determine their composition as a function of synthesis and processing. A high-resolution scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer will enable us to conduct this analysis and create a new multi-user materials analysis facility at UAB. The instrument serves a large group of scientists and students in UAB's Department of Materials Science, the Center for Nanoscale Materials and Biointegration, four other UAB academic departments, partners at Alabama State University (ASU), and other scientists across the state. It provides training in seven graduate and undergraduate courses, enhances the UAB Research Experiences for Undergraduates program where women and minorities account for 57% of the participants, and raises the awareness of materials science, nanotechnology and engineering among K-12 students, teachers, and the general public. This will be accomplished through our Research Experiences for Teachers program and Nanotechnology day at McWane Science Center in Birmingham. It also fosters broader research collaboration at the state, national and international levels. Overall, this SEM system is a critical element of UAB research infrastructure, linked to the development of highly skilled personnel and the generation of new knowledge, which are a prerequisite for progress in science and technology as well as economic growth.
The new Scanning Electron Microscope, or SEM, recently purchased by UAB with a grant from the National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation Program, magnifies images up to 100,000x, and these images can be viewed on the wall of a classroom. The microscope is so powerful that one grain of pollen will look the size of a golf ball, and a human hair, which is roughly 0.0004 inches in diameter, will appear 30 feet across at 100,000x magnification. The new SEM is a versatile, high-performance instrument that can accommodate a wide range of samples. It addresses the need to investigate a variety of materials and characterize structure and composition. Researchers can view almost any sample and obtain surface and compositional images. A multi-user facility has been created featuring the SEM. The instrument serves a large group of scientists and students in UAB's Department of Materials Science, the Center for Nanoscale Materials and Biointegration, four other UAB academic departments, partners at Alabama State University (ASU), and other scientists across the state. It has been used to provide training in seven graduate and undergraduate courses, enhance the UAB Research Experiences for Undergraduates program and raise the awareness of materials science, nanotechnology and engineering among K-12 students, teachers, and the general public.
