2017 Professional Development Workshop in Ceramics

Colorado School Of Mines, Golden CO

Investigators

Abstract

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPITON: The goal of the 2017 Professional Development Workshop in Ceramics is to enhance the career development of the next generation of future leaders in ceramic materials research and education. The workshop focuses on seven early-career faculty who have recently been awarded NSF CAREER grants from the Ceramics Program in the Division of Materials Research, but the workshop activities have been structured to be of value to all participants as there is a desire to increase the scale and scope of this workshop over prior versions. The workshop is also open to other early-career faculty as well as interested post-doctoral associates, faculty-minded senior graduate students, and more senior faculty interested in mentoring the next generation. The activity is an intensive two-day workshop that brings together the two 2015 and five 2016 CAREER awardees with targeted panels of US-based and international experts from their chosen technical specialties in a forum that promotes professional discussions, mentoring and networking activities. The direct panel feedback will impact the research and training of the early career faculty; the broader exchange of best practices for training and teaching as well as the forging of new collaborative research opportunities and mentoring relationships will benefit all participants. These outcomes should provide a strong base of support that helps the CAREER awardees succeed in becoming outstanding researchers and educators in their chosen fields and will help to strengthen the broader ceramic materials research community. TECHNICAL DETAILS: The 2017 Professional Development Workshop in Ceramics focuses on seven technical topics to be presented by the seven participating CAREER awardees: 1) Multiscale visualization of electrochemical reactions via advanced in situ characterization techniques 2) Nano-architechtured and defect-driven electrode materials for rechargeable batteries, 3) Defect and interface effects on moving ferroelectric domain walls, 4) Core-shell nanowire structures of Li7La3Zr2O12 electrolytes, 5) Bifunctional materials that can serve as either battery anode or cathode, 6) Low-CO2 cements via fundamental reaction studies across multiple length and time scales, and 7) Off-valence substitution for valence control of dopant ions in laser ceramics. The respective early career faculty and the technical experts in their sub-specialties of ceramic materials research are leading the scientific discussions for the purpose of critically evaluating research plans, career development, and education efforts.