$1.2 Million NSF Grant For Magnetic Nanoscale Assemblers - News Item

A University of Akron engineering professor will help to explore the use of magnets to assemble nanoscale devices through a recent $1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Dr. Igor Tsukerman, UA associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, is part of a team of researchers that was awarded a four-year grant of $1,228,000 through NSF's Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Teams program. The team's project is titled “Magnetically Driven Assembly of Heterogeneous Nanosystems.”

For the project, Tsukerman joins a group of researchers from Drexel University, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Nanoscale technology and computer simulation tools being developed in the project are expected to lead to advances in nanoscale devices. The team is exploring magnetically driven assembly (MAGDA), a new method for building multicomponent systems out of diverse types of nanodevices. The assembly of nanodevices into multicomponent systems is a critical element of nanotechnology, which involves working with structures in the scale of one billionth of a meter.

“It's a thrill to be part of a superb team working on cutting-edge problems in nanotechnology, where the engineering challenges are inseparable from the deep mysteries of nature,” Tsukerman says.

“The faculty of the College of Engineering is engaged in cutting-edge research in several exciting new areas,” adds engineering Dean Dr. George Haritos. “This major award provides a real opportunity for important advances in the assembly of nanoscale devices, a critical component of the nanotechnology revolution. We expect this effort to grow in the future, and anticipate important breakthroughs from our faculty and students.”

Posted 17^th December 2003