Meyer Hall, constructed in 1963, is home to the Department of Physics on the campus of the Colorado School of the Mines. Primarily designed as a facility for the delivery of introductory courses to non-physics science and engineering undergraduates, the facility is inadequate to support the voluminous research activities currently being conducted by 20 faculty members, 40 graduate students, and 100 undergraduate students. Two major emphases of research in the department are in condensed matter physics and materials science. As experimental work in these areas has increased, the use of toxic chemicals and hazardous processing procedures has greatly expanded and the facility is unable to accommodate research. Currently, these activities are dispersed throughout the building, often located near classrooms, instructional laboratories, or offices. Since there are no areas in the building designed specifically to accommodate the safe handling of such materials, the situation has rapidly become intolerable. The marginal facility is poorly ventilated, and includes a number of temporary safety structures. With advances in condensed matter science, sample preparation capabilities are important and needed, especially in semiconductor device physics and in surface science. To rectify and improve this condition, the Colorado School of the Mines will receive funds from the Academic Research Infrastructure Program to renovate an area located on the fourth floor as a dedicated facility for the safe handling of toxic chemical and hazardous materials. The renovation will consists of reconfiguring space and improving infrastructural utilities, in addition to installing fume hoods, benches, cabinets, and glove boxes. chemical storage facilities and a small clean room will be created as well. Renovation of the materials handling and processing laboratories will provide the department with modern facilities crucial in supporting research in optical properties of metals, semiconductor processing, thin film growth, and the characterization of amorphous silicon. The facility will not only benefit research programs in the Physics Department, but several research projects conducted by researchers affiliated with Colorado Advanced Materials Institute, a State materials program involved with promoting research and economic development in selected technologies, will be enhanced.
