Equipment: MRI Track 1: Acquisition of a LA-ICP-MS for Research and Research Training

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award provides funding to Oberlin College to acquire a laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma quadrupole mass spectrometer (LA-ICP-MS), an instrument used to analyze a broad range of solid (mineral and tissue) and liquid samples to deepen understanding of their composition and significance. This highly versatile system will enable ten faculty – six from three departments at Oberlin College and four from other Ohio colleges and universities – to perform cutting-edge research and to train undergraduate science students.

Oberlin College Geosciences faculty and students will map the distribution of trace metals in minerals in metamorphic rocks to reconstruct their pressure-temperature histories, and, by examining isotope clocks in the mineral zircon, study fundamental Earth processes such as mountain building. Other faculty will apply similar techniques to fossils and modern shells to better understand how these organisms respond to and record the changing climate.

The instrument will also be used to study chlorine pollution in Lake Erie and to research erosion and changing land use. Faculty in Neuroscience and Chemistry and Biochemistry will study the uptake of heavy metals in brain tissue and the model organism Caenorhabditis Elegans (C. elegans), research that can contribute to our understanding of strategies for reducing the harmful impacts of environmental toxins.

The LA-ICP-MS will enhance the research productivity of the ten-member proposing team, which is majority female and includes four early-career scientists and three members of minoritized groups underrepresented in the sciences. Oberlin is a leading educator of students who go on to earn PhDs in the sciences, and this instrument will improve the research training of undergraduates, who will use it in upper-level classes as well as in independent projects.

It will also improve the ability of Oberlin and the other participating institutions – Denison University, The College of Wooster, and Case Western Reserve University – to recruit and train a diverse group of students in scientific research.

The acquisition of an ICP-MS with tandem quadrupoles and gas reaction cell coupled to a 193 nm laser ablation system with precise stage control will enable faculty at Oberlin to perform cutting-edge research while recruiting and training future scientists. The newest generation of LA systems supports high-resolution (~3 μm) spatial analyses with a fast wash-out, which, when carefully synchronized with a high-sensitivity quadrupole ICP-MS, allows for detailed imaging of trace elements, opening up new avenues of research.

Likewise, substantial recent developments in tandem quadrupole and collision/reaction cell mass spectrometry allow greatly increased sensitivity through the removal of mass interferences. Science education at Oberlin is enhanced by the active and productive research programs of individual and collaborative faculty, and access to the LA-ICP-MS system will advance several research programs at the institution, will enable Oberlin to attract and retain a top science faculty and provide infrastructure for them to remain at the forefront of their disciplines while continuing our mission of high-quality research training.

Importantly, undergraduate students will be primary users of the LA-ICP-MS, enabling them to develop hands-on experience and skills useful for their future careers in science

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.