REU Site: Creative Approaches to Materials Design and Processing

University Of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia MO

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). Non-Technical Summary This REU Site at the University of Missouri-Columbia that focuses on materials design and processing is unique in that it includes proven, theatre-based creativity training interwoven into the framework of the more traditional research and professional development activities. This program is deliberately designed to address the urgent need for innovation in materials research in the United States. Creativity training is a necessary and fundamental component to building innovative capabilities in scientists and engineers but is rarely part of traditional curricula. This REU Site fills a critical gap in workforce development in materials design and manufacturing and addresses a national need for researchers who can solve complex, interconnected problems. The site purposefully promotes inclusivity through national recruitment of students, with an emphasis on non-Ph.D.-granting institutions, institutions that support under-represented minority students, and institutions that support deaf/hard-of-hearing students. Students work in teams and are co-mentored by affiliated faculty in the research area of their choice. The program leverages existing campus resources that include professional development training, and both social and academic support. Combining this wrap-around programming with interdisciplinary research in materials design/processing and creativity training, this REU Site enables undergraduate students to explore new avenues to materials innovation in the 21st century. Technical Summary Innovation in materials design and processing requires a fundamental understanding of the interrelationships among structure, composition, processing, and properties. This is particularly critical for advanced functional materials, which are often micro- or nano-structured, and built through either self-assembly or complex fabrication processes, due to their unique and complex structure-function relationships, and their potential use in applications critical to human health and security. This REU Site at the University of Missouri-Columbia focuses on understanding and predicting these relationships for micro- and nano-structured materials across a wide spectrum of applications, including sensors, batteries, reactors, and implantable devices. The approaches include atomistic simulation, coarse-grain modeling, and materials design/fabrication/characterization techniques. This research intends to not only advance the science in each unique area, but provide students with unique, measurable skills in computational modeling, materials science design, processing, characterization, and creative thinking. 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.