An electron backscatter diffraction and energy dispersive spectroscopy detector system for Geoscience and materials research

This award supports the purchase of an electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry (EDS) system. The equipment will provide compositional and microstructural information of minerals, metals, and other materials. This will advance our understanding of how the Earth deforms, how and why volcanoes erupt, and how critical ore deposits form. Studies of geothermal systems, ore processing, and development of dynamic smart windows for buildings will also be enabled. The detector system will provide opportunities for STEM outreach and technical workforce development, including hands-on training for students preparing to enter the workforce. The new, state-of-the art EBSD and EDS detectors provide a substantial increase in the speed and sensitivity of data collection. The combined system will enable collection of large area maps, small area maps at very high spatial resolution, and high angular resolution data. As a result, the new system will enable critical advances in our understanding of a variety of geological processes: deformation and kinematics of fault and shear zones, petrochronology, magmatic rates and processes, and critical metal systems. Other STEM applications include process metallurgy, exploration of unconventional Lithium-bearing resources, photoconversion, geothermal energy, and planetary-analog studies. The instrument will also be used for hands-on training of undergraduate and graduate students in microbeam techniques. The Geoscience community will benefit through the development of best practices for EBSD–EDS data collection, management, and sharing using the recently developed NSF-funded StraboMicro application. 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. NSF Award ID: 2601578 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Stacia Gordon | Institution: Board of Regents, NSHE, obo University of Nevada, Reno, RENO, NV | Award Amount: $234,089 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2601578 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2601578.html