This project is introducing a materials synthesis and processing program through the Department of Chemistry. The centerpiece of the program is a new laboratory course entitled, Materials Synthesis and Characterization. The course features four concurrent, semester-long, inquiry-based laboratory experiments drawn from both industrial interactions and current research in materials synthesis. Students are participating in each of the four experiments in a rotation that requires information transfer from one group to the next. Thirteen experiments are featured in the project. Students are being required to formulate long-term research objectives and defend them under scrutiny from their peers, the professors, and the industrial advisors. An interdisciplinary enrollment from chemistry, physics, chemical engineering, and mechanical engineering is ensured by aggressive recruitment. Problemsolving in this environment mimics how complex research and development is performed and teaches the students how to interact with colleagues from other disciplines. In addition to the aforementioned course, the acquisition of the new characterization tools are impacting 15 materials-related courses and more than 100 students per year by enabling new experiments. The project also involves the purchase of a thermogravimetric analyzer, a thermomechanical analyzer, a dynamic mechanical analyzer, a differential scanning calorimeter, a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer, a gel permeation chromatography apparatus, a diffractometer with thin film optics, and an upgrade to a sputtering system that enables the deposition of multilayer films. *
