This Nanotechnology in Undergraduate Education (NUE) award, funded by the Division of Materials Research, supports Drs. Lloyd A. Bumm and Mathew B. Johnson, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Oklahoma, Norman, to develop a nanotechnology laboratory course for undergraduates, NanoLab - a Hands-On Introduction to Nanoscience for Scientists and Engineers. NanoLab is a hands-on laboratory course in nanotechnology targeting sophomore undergraduate students in the physical sciences, the biological sciences, and engineering. The students gain an understanding of nanotechnology through hands-on experience with top-down and bottom-up nanofabrication techniques, such as lithographic patterning, nanoparticle growth, and self-assembly. Hands-on experience with state of the art nanometer-scale characterization techniques, such as atomic-force microscopy, is an integral part of the course. NanoLab is offered during the August intersession as an intensive four-week laboratory course. The course is also open to students from other universities, RET scholars, and to especially talented high school students. The NanoLab facilities are also available for Capstone undergraduate research and for REU summer research. Modules are spun off and incorporated into the junior physics laboratory course where the science is explored in more depth.
