Project Profile
Interdisciplinary Graduate Education and Research Training in Meso-, Micro- and Nano- (MMN) Scale Thermalfluid Systems Engineering and Science
University of Utah
Abstract
This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) award supports the establishment of a multidisciplinary graduate training program of education and research on extremely small scale thermal-fluid systems. The applications of extremely small scale thermal- and fluid-systems are expanding exponentially, including: silicon microfabrication technology based turbines; microscale heat… more »
This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) award supports the establishment of a multidisciplinary graduate training program of education and research on extremely small scale thermal-fluid systems. The applications of extremely small scale thermal- and fluid-systems are expanding exponentially, including: silicon microfabrication technology based turbines; microscale heat exchangers for cooling high-power electronics, and micro- and nano- scale chemical and biological analyses systems. The objective of this program is to create the first integrated, multidisciplinary educational program in extremely small scale thermal-fluid systems. The program emphasis will be on (1) the fundamental engineering physics and chemistry that are important at these small scales; (2) fabrication technologies; (3) design for manufacturing; and (4) testing and analysis of complete systems.
An interdisciplinary faculty will provide a comprehensive education and research training program, including six new, specialized courses and integrated research experiences. These classes will involve a diverse set of topics such as scaling issues, micromachining, interfacial phenomena, and thin-film energy transport. Between 50 and 60 Ph.D. students will be enrolled in this program over its five-year life. These students will participate in formal classroom and laboratory training, industrial and government laboratory internships, a monthly interdisciplinary seminar, and international educational experiences. The concentration on thermal-fluid systems is a unique feature that will provide critical training in an important discipline within the broader micro- and nano-systems technology field.
IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the multidisciplinary backgrounds and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing new, innovative models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. In the third year of the program, awards are being made to nineteen institutions for programs that collectively span all areas of science and engineering supported by NSF. The intellectual foci of this specific award reside in the Directorates for Engineering; Mathematical and Physical Sciences; and Education and Human Resources. « less
