MRI: Acquisition of a Modern Electron Microprobe, University of Massachusetts

MRI：购买现代电子显微探针，马萨诸塞大学

• 批准号: 1726685
• 负责人: Michael Williams
• 金额: $ 77万
• 依托单位: University of Massachusetts Amherst
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-09-01 至 2019-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1726685&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: MRI; Acquisition; Modern; Electron; Microprobe

The acquisition of a new, state-of-the-art electron microprobe at the University of Massachusetts serves to enable numerous NSF funded research projects involving researchers at UMass and the other members of the Five-college community (Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Amherst, and Hampshire colleges), and many other regional and national institutions. This MRI grant supports the acquisition of an instrument that will replace an aging electron probe that was the workhorse micro-analytical tool at UMass for the past 27 years, a significant portion of the 50+ year legacy of electron probe micro-analysis at UMass. Students and researchers have used, and continue to use, the facility for compositional mapping and compositional micro-analysis for research in petrology, geochemistry, climate science, biology, chemistry, materials research, and engineering, and the growing emphasis on high-technology materials will continue to expand this use into exciting new directions in a number of fields of the physical and engineering-related sciences. This grant serves to directly support NSF?s mission to promote the progress of science and advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare as the enabled fundamental research has the potential to greatly enhance our understanding of Earth and planetary processes, processes involving the origin and evolution of life, and in the exploration and development of resources and technology.The electron probe micro-analyzer (EPMA) provides non-destructive, in-situ analysis of mineral phases on the scale of a micrometer or less by use of a focused electron beam that generates characteristic X-rays from the target sample. The intensity of these X-rays is used to calculate the absolute concentrations of specific elements in the target. Reaction histories and the conditions of formation can be inferred, revealing geologic or other relevant physical/chemical aspects of natural and synthetic systems, everything from the formation of continents to biomineralization architectures (such as crustacean cuticles), to the construction of optical fibers, integrated circuits, or alloys. The new instrument will offer much improved electron beam performance over a higher range of current and voltage, higher resolution sample stage motion, better, cleaner vacuum technology, high counting efficiency spectrometers for improved precision and analytical efficiency, highly improved, more robust electronics for improved reliability and stability, and greatly improved control and analysis software. Current projects supported by NSF include studies of mid and deep-crustal processes, field and experimental studies of magmatic systems from around the world, mineral analysis for spectroscopy and mineralogy; meteoritics, environmental materials analysis, as well as materials testing for researchers from engineering and compositional analysis for soil science. The new microprobe will also play an essential role in a major technique development project at UMass, electron microprobe geochronology. With a new microprobe, the UMass facility will be well positioned to move forward as a regional resource for new development, on-going research, and student training. Many faculty members, and post-docs depend on the UMass electron probe facility, and hundreds of students have interacted with the facility as part of student research, class projects, and/or lab demonstrations. In addition, many outside researchers who visit the laboratory are from non-PhD granting institutions and many bring undergraduate students to participate in the analytical work. The UMass Microprobe Facility has played a major role in training future analysts including practical and theoretical courses at UMass and training of a large number of post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate students. The PIs have run numerous tours, lab demonstrations, workshops, and lectures for UMass, Five-college, and outside college classes, for K-12 classes, for community groups, and for the general public. These activities inspire interest in both science-oriented and non-science oriented people, and reinforce the message that modern Geoscience is a quantitative, high-tech, very relevant endeavor.

马萨诸塞大学购买了一种新型、最先进的电子微探针，使许多 NSF 资助的研究项目得以实现，这些项目涉及马萨诸塞大学的研究人员和五校社区的其他成员（史密斯、霍利奥克山、阿默斯特） 、汉普郡学院）以及许多其他地区和国家机构。 这笔 MRI 拨款支持购买一台仪器，该仪器将取代老化的电子探针，该电子探针是麻省大学过去 27 年的主力微分析工具，这是麻省大学 50 多年电子探针微分析遗产的重要组成部分。学生和研究人员已经并将继续使用该成分绘图和成分微量分析设施，用于岩石学、地球化学、气候科学、生物学、化学、材料研究和工程的研究，以及对高科技材料的日益重视将继续将这种用途扩展到物理和工程相关科学的许多领域中令人兴奋的新方向。 这笔赠款旨在直接支持 NSF 促进科学进步和促进国民健康、繁荣和福利的使命，因为基础研究有潜力极大地增强我们对地球和行星过程、涉及起源和发展的过程的理解。电子探针显微分析仪 (EPMA) 通过使用聚焦电子，对微米或更小尺度的矿物相进行非破坏性原位分析产生特征X射线的光束目标样本。 这些 X 射线的强度用于计算目标中特定元素的绝对浓度。可以推断反应历史和形成条件，揭示自然和合成系统的地质或其他相关物理/化学方面，从大陆的形成到生物矿化结构（例如甲壳动物角质层），到光纤的构造，综合电路或合金。新仪器将在更大的电流和电压范围内提供大大改进的电子束性能、更高分辨率的样品台运动、更好、更清洁的真空技术、用于提高精度和分析效率的高计数效率光谱仪、高度改进、更坚固的电子设备以改进可靠性和稳定性，大大提高了控制和分析软件。目前由 NSF 支持的项目包括中深地壳过程研究、世界各地岩浆系统的现场和实验研究、光谱学和矿物学的矿物分析；陨石学、环境材料分析以及土壤科学工程和成分分析研究人员的材料测试。新的微型探针还将在麻省大学电子微型探针地质年代学的重大技术开发项目中发挥重要作用。有了新的微探针，麻省大学的设施将处于有利地位，可以作为新开发、持续研究和学生培训的区域资源向前发展。 许多教职员工和博士后都依赖麻省大学电子探针设施，并且作为学生研究、课堂项目和/或实验室演示的一部分，数百名学生与该设施进行了互动。此外，参观实验室的外部研究人员很多来自非博士学位授予机构，也有不少带本科生参与分析工作。麻省大学微探针设施在培养未来分析师方面发挥了重要作用，包括麻省大学的实践和理论课程以及培训大量博士后、研究生和本科生。 PI 为麻省大学、五所学院和校外班级、K-12 班级、社区团体和公众举办了多次参观、实验室演示、研讨会和讲座。这些活动激发了科学人士和非科学人士的兴趣，并强化了这样的信息：现代地球科学是一项定量的、高科技的、非常相关的事业。