REU Site: Materials for Energy and the Environment

Princeton University, Princeton NJ

Investigators

Abstract

This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site program at Princeton University offers state-of-the-art materials science research experiences with a special emphasis on sustainable energy production, to diverse and talented cohorts of students from a variety of institutions, particularly those with limited or no research opportunities. Sustainable energy is one of the greatest scientific and engineering challenges of the 21st century, and materials science is essential to developing environmentally sound, carbon-neutral solutions. This program will provide training for the next generation of engineers and scientists to tackle the challenges of sustainable energy and protecting the environment. The centerpiece of the program is a meaningful research experience with direct mentorship by a faculty advisor. The REU experience expands the horizons of participating students, opening new intellectual frontiers and career opportunities via seminars, where students learn about a spectrum of scientific problems that have implications for our technology-focused world. Students will have the opportunity to explore career options via tours to industrial and government laboratories and will be introduced to key tools for data acquisition, data processing and modeling, and experimental design. These tools permeate the modern research lab, and will be valuable skills for the students throughout their careers. This REU Site offers undergraduates, in collaboration with Princeton faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students, opportunities to conduct research during a 9-week summer program, on renewable energy sources (new photovoltaic materials), hydrogen production with carbon capture (carbon-sequestration technologies), electrochemical energy conversion and storage (batteries, fuel cells, and ultracapacitors), and environmental monitoring. The discoveries made during these collaborations will be communicated to the broader scientific community via publications and presentations. In addition, students will participate in a range of activities outside the lab to learn more about the wider research community and to hone the skills needed to become successful contributors to the community. These include: 1) Professional development workshops on technical writing, oral presentations and career options. 2) Exposure to non-academic career paths through tours of national research labs and industrial R&D labs. 3) Broadening intellectual awareness through weekly seminars on faculty research entrepreneurship, and research ethics. 4) Teambuilding activities to create an informal environment to interact and learn from peers and mentors. This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.