Materials Interfaces Research and Access-(MIRA-PREM)- an NSF PREM Center

Northern Arizona University is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) with Underrepresented Minority (URM) students making up ~40% of the student population. NAU’s Center for Materials Interfaces in Research and Applications (¡MIRA!) supports the Applied Physics and Materials Science (APMS), Informatics and Computing, and Mechanical Engineering PhD programs and multiple undergraduate research and education programs across the NAU STEM enterprise.

The ¡MIRA-PREM! partnership consisting of NAU, Pasadena City College (PCC), and the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin) Center for Dynamics and Control of Materials (CDCM)-NSF-Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) is designed to: 1) create clear, focused, high-impact materials research projects with inclusive, supportive research teams, and 2) culturally responsive, community-reflective education opportunities. Advanced functional materials have the potential to positively transform every aspect of life, however, without proactive mechanisms of inclusion, may disproportionately leave behind communities most in need, particularly in education and career opportunities.

It is imperative that materials research is accessible, and future materials research workforce and leadership- from entry level to the most senior positions- are reflective, especially of historically minoritized and underrepresented minority communities (HMURM). ¡MIRA-PREM! is designed to demonstrate active mechanisms to meet this accessibility demand. ¡MIRA-PREM! will support materials education and research pathways from the community college to the PhD level through culturally and community reflective programming and engagement. Fundamental to increasing participation in materials research is making science education accessible beyond those already engaged. ¡MIRA-PREM! invites students, particularly HMURM students to participate and thrive as themselves, not assimilate into a world of research and discovery. ¡MIRA-PREM! student programs, such as Sparking Curiosity in STEM (SparCS) (Community Outreach Intervention), Club sCientifico de SparCS (CCSparCS)- a multilingual STEM communication program, and UT CDCM REU are designed to 1) enhance scientific skills and communication; 2) combat imposter syndrome, and 3) empower through community and engagement.

¡MIRA-PREM! cross-institutional research is organized via Focus Areas (FAs). !MIRA-PREM! FA1: New Materials for Controlled Light-Matter Interactions. Cross-institutional teams will explore 1) regulation of material optical properties through rational design; 2) light-induced emergent materials behavior, and 3) photonic response of non-equilibrium materials.

Investigated systems range from quantum to macro-scales and soft/bio to solid state. FA2: ElectroResponsive Materials. Nanostructured and solid-state materials will be explored toward understanding how material interfaces drive electro-induced behavior.

Proposed research efforts will result in significant advancement in the understanding of how material interfaces can be designed, controlled, or regulated toward emergent behavior in novel material systems for optical and electronic advanced technology applications including quantum information science (QIS), energy, microelectronics, sensing, and beyond. PCC and NAU students and researchers will benefit from access to world-class facilities and expertise of UT Austin’s CDCM and integrate via CDCM’s REU program, supported student research exchanges and cross-institutional mentoring and engagement.

Proposed research builds upon expertise and capabilities existing in the UT CDCM MRSEC and aligns strongly with research interests and interdisciplinary research groups (IRGs): IRG 1: Fuel-driven Pluripotent Materials, and: IRG 2: Engineered Functionality in Atomically Thin Heterostructures.

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.