RET Site: Atomic Scale Design and Engineering

North Carolina State University, Raleigh NC

Investigators

Abstract

This Research Experience for Teachers (RET) Site program at North Carolina State University (NCSU) will equip teachers with the knowledge, tools, and resources they need to teach nanotechnology to their students including the equipment and techniques that are used to fabricate or manufacture at the nanoscale, ways to see and identify atoms in a manufactured structure, and the ability to relate research to real-world applications. Nanotechnology is impacting sectors as diverse as medicine, textiles, electronics, and energy. However, concepts in nanotechnology are often complex and teachers are not readily exposed to tools and techniques because of their expense or availability. This RET program will immerse teachers in state-of-the-art university research laboratories to learn nanotechnology concepts and contribute to a research project. The program will help them to develop unique curricula that will be shared with hundreds of students in their classrooms, schools, and districts. The research focus is timely as scientific advances have given engineers greater control over the creation and analysis of materials at the nanoscale using tools like transmission electron microscopes. This program gives educators the experiences, knowledge, and tools needed to communicate the underlying science effectively, allowing them to train a generation of students who better understand nanotechnology and its role in addressing societal grand challenges. Educators' experiences will be enabled through participation in university research projects as well as tours and usage of nanotechnology core facilities within the Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network (RTNN) and engagement with companies. The NSF-funded RTNN, which is one of 16 sites in the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure, is a collaboration between North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Duke University. Participants will be recruited from local school districts and community colleges with high populations of underrepresented students. Teams of 2-3 teachers will be assembled to enable nano-focused curriculum development integrated across multiple grades. Each team will be advised by a faculty research mentor at one of the RTNN institutions. Participants will create and characterize nanoscale materials or devices, connect their work to real-world applications, and gain experience with state-of-the-art research tools and techniques. Currently, most K-12 and community college students have limited access to this field and the resources necessary to support nanotechnology fabrication and development. The first week is dedicated to orientation activities; the following weeks will intertwine project work with curricular development. To cap off the program, educator teams will finalize curricular materials and share their research experiences with fellow RET participants in a symposium. Upon return to their home institutions, educators will implement their curricula and continue to work with open-access user facilities at the participating universities. Through dissemination efforts, this program has the potential to impact thousands of students, many of whom are minorities from low wealth communities, and to encourage their pursuit of STEM careers. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.