REU Site: Integrated Optics for Undergraduates (IOU)

University Of Arizona, Tucson AZ

Investigators

Abstract

This three-year REU Site program titled "Integrated Optics for Undergraduates (IOU)" is part of the NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Integrated Access Networks (CIAN) lead by the University of Arizona, and will be distributed across five ERC partner institutions (University of Arizona, University of California San Diego (UCSD), University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Columbia University and the University of California Berkeley). Twelve undergraduate students each year for ten summer weeks will be engaged in research in the field of photonics communications. The core of this REU Site program will be independent research under a faculty mentor that will be augmented by a series of workshops to prepare the REU students to perform research, to initiate thought and discussion about ethical issues in the research environment, and to consider career opportunities and higher education in engineering. The REU program contains a formal ethics component with a two day workshop, fostering the commitment of REU participants to ethical practices in their future careers. In addition to the directed research, many additional enrichment activities are included: a career workshop by CIAN's industrial liaison, GRE preparation and lab notebook seminars, direct training in how to organize a research poster and scientific manuscript, and overviews about working in the field of photonics. These enrichment activities will greatly strengthen the impact of the proposed REU and will be of great value in the future academic and career development of the participants. Finally, participants will make an oral presentation, participate in a poster session, write a manuscript and will be encouraged to submit to journals designed for undergraduate research. What are the broader impacts of the proposed activity? The primary objective of this REU Site program is to expose female and minority undergraduates from predominantly non-PhD granting institutions to systems-driven research environments in order to initiate or develop aspirations to pursue scientific careers and higher education. CAIN has established recruitment relationships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and community colleges, i.e., Norfolk State University, Tuskegee University, Morgan State University, Prima Community College, Tohono O'odham Tribal Community College, Cochise College, San Diego Miramar College, and San Diego City College. CIAN's research addresses photonic materials for optical communication systems and devices, which in the future will replace current electronic technology. Optical communications is an emerging technology, and these students have the opportunity to be part of a highly trained workforce needed to advance this field. These students will also have an opportunity to participate in a national professional meeting and present the outcomes of their research experience. "This REU Site is co-funded by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program."