2022 Vibrational Spectroscopy: Unravelling Chemical Heterogeneity

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

This award is to support the 2022 Vibrational Spectroscopy Gordon Research Seminar and Gordon Research Conference, to be held July 30 through August 5, 2022. The conference will provide a forum to highlight the unique role of vibrational spectroscopy in understanding structure, dynamics, and function of materials in complex, anisotropic environments.

The unique format of a Gordon Research Conference will provide an opportunity to define the core community and address evolving challenges that are critical to current and future research efforts. The Gordon Research Conference will facilitate concentrated and vibrant discussions between the speakers and the audience. The Conference includes a diverse program of invited speakers and will provide numerous opportunities for early career researchers to build their networks and showcase their research.

This award will provide support for eight early career scientists from underrepresented groups, including underrepresented minorities, women, and individuals with disabilities. TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

The conference seeks to make a connection between the fundamental behavior of matter at a molecular level with particular emphasis on how complex, dynamic, and crowded environments alter and affect molecular behavior. The unifying theme is cutting-edge spectroscopies that exploit vibrational signatures to probe the structures, dynamics, reactivity, and environments of molecules in gases, clusters, aerosols, liquids and solid materials, and at the interfaces between different materials.

This conference will advance knowledge by emphasizing the use of established vibrational spectroscopic techniques to study new and challenging heterogeneous systems of interest. The conference will also advance knowledge by presenting emerging topics in the field, such as vibrational microscopy and novel methods for computing and simulating vibrational spectra.

Advances in theory and simulations of vibrational spectra will be interwoven with experimental presentations to promote an open dialog between experimentalists and theoreticians. The program includes a mechanism to assess the success of the conference in achieving its goals and for improvements in future years.

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.