This award from the Major Research Instrumentation Program supports the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) with the acquisition of a Nova NanoSEM 450 high-resolution field emission scanning electron microscope (SEM) with low-vacuum option. The instrument has nanometer resolution and it is equipped with multiple detectors for secondary and backscattered electron imaging, energy dispersive X-ray detector for elemental analysis and mapping, backscattered electron diffraction for crystallographic and texture analysis, and a detector for scanning transmission electron imaging. The ability of the instrument to achieve nanometer resolution in low vacuum makes it a unique addition to the pool of SEMs available in the Baltimore-Washington area and will substantially enhance the research infrastructure of UMBC and the region. It will accelerate progress in many existing research programs, allow them to extend much farther than possible with the current SEM, and enables researchers to move into areas that are beyond the existing capabilities. The instrument will serve professors and their students from UMBC's science and engineering departments, as well as users from other universities, government laboratories and private firms. It will enable the study of the microstructure of alloys and composites, a variety of thin films and multilayers, optical fibers, functionalized gold nanoparticles, the texture of weld joints, aerosol particles, and others. The low-vacuum option is suitable for the study of partially insulating nanocomposite powders, dental tissue and restoration materials, archaeological artifacts, etc. The Nova NanoSEM 450 supports teaching through both undergraduate and graduate coursework and research projects. Many potential users of the new SEM involve undergraduate students in their research; those students will have the opportunity to use the instrument. Also, as UMBC has very diverse student population, the prospect to use the new SEM will certainly attract female and minority students to the STEM disciplines. ****
Modern materials science is unimaginable without the scanning electron microscope (SEM) that can image samples on multiple length scales and provides information on morphology, chemical composition, and even crystallographic orientation. Although commercial scanning electron microscopes have been around for more than 50 years, there has been tremendous progress in SEM technology during the last decade. The Nova NanoSEM 450 supported by this Major Research Instrumentation award is a cutting edge instrument that has a unique combination of capabilities, such as nanometer resolution in both high and low vacuum and a variety of detectors that make it an extremely versatile instrument. It will be used to investigate nanocomposite powders, thin films, dental tissue and materials, gold nanoparticles, the texture of weld joints, aerosol particles, archaeological artifacts and others. The instrument is a major addition to UMBC's research infrastructure. It will serve researchers and their graduate and undergraduate students from several science and engineering departments, as well as users from other universities, government laboratories and private firms. It will accelerate existing research programs and enable investigations that are beyond the capabilities of the existing SEM. It will also be utilized in undergraduate and graduate courses. As UMBC has a very diverse student population, the opportunity to use this cutting edge instrument will certainly attract female and minority students to the STEM disciplines.
