NRT-HDR: Advancing Materials Frontiers with Creativity and Data Science

The discovery and development of new materials is currently a decades-long endeavor, using approaches that have remained largely unchanged for over a century. The parameter space for materials design is vast and multidimensional and is frequently guided by human intuition and experience. A fundamentally new research methodology is needed to meet societal needs in semiconductor, energy, biological, and manufacturing applications.

The future of research will incorporate an increased reliance on machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) in the design, analysis, and execution of experiments, thereby changing the role of humans in the research process. While the ML and AI tools may accelerate research, they do not inherently generate understanding or create new applications.

These uniquely human roles must be fostered and encouraged via creativity training – a topic absent in most graduate STEM curricula. This NRT award to University of Missouri- Columbia will prepare trainees for this future by integrating data science and analytics (DSA), evidence-based creativity, and cutting-edge materials training. The program will train sixty doctoral students, including thirty-six NRT-funded trainees.

Trainees in the NRT program will complete a rigorous DSA graduate certificate offered by the University of Missouri. As part of the NRT, a materials emphasis area will be added to the DSA program that emphasizes materials data curation, analysis, and evaluation. Major research areas for trainees include autonomous research systems to map complex synthesis-structure-property relationships, archeometry to investigate materials of the ancient world, optical metasurfaces, and amorphous interface engineering using advanced structural reconstruction techniques.

Trainees will also learn to think creatively, to innovate, and to expand the societal impact of materials research using an evidence-based creativity training curriculum. The creativity training will be formally integrated into the research plan and dissertation of each trainee. The NRT trainees and faculty will facilitate a culture of respect and trust by promoting new ideas, accepting failures, and encouraging risk taking.

Biweekly Café Hours, annual outings, and outreach activities will foster a welcoming and informal environment while building a community of practice. Each trainee and mentor will use an individual development plan to customize training activities to suit the career path of each trainee.

The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The program is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.  

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.