pictured left to right: Scott Danielsen (MSE), Antonio Facchetti (MSE), Chad Risko (UK), Erin Ratcliff (MSE), Natalie Stingelin (MSE), Rigoberto Advincula (ORNL)

Recently, a few members of MSE’s faculty had the opportunity to spend time at the Center for Nanophase Material Sciences (CNMS) at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Scott Danielsen, Erin Ratcliff, Antonio Facchetti, and Natalie Stingelin represented Georgia Tech in this visit to ORNL, a connection that MSE hopes to see flourish and grow into a Southeast Science Alliance.

ORNL was initially established in 1943 as a part of the Manhattan Project, a research and development program undertaken during World War II. ORNL has built a legacy of scientific discovery and innovation. This large lab has many focused and specific facilities, including the CNMS. CNMS engages in collaborative research projects, working with other public and private institutions as one of the facility's core goals. MSE was proud to be a part of this collaboration and hopes to collaborate more with their colleagues at CNMS.

This visit allowed experts from GT and ORNL to discuss mutual interests in soft materials, autonomous materials discovery and characterization, and the potential for AI in MSE. GT has been a core university partner to not only ORNL, but also to CNMS specifically, and it’s something that these faculty members are thrilled to continue pursuing. MSE hopes to see this connection continue to flourish thanks to many complimentary equipment offerings.

Last October, at the Southeast Polymer Forum at ORNL, many GT faculty and students participated. After this subsequent visit to CNMS, MSE looks forward to continued and increased collaboration with ORNL, planning to return with user proposals, ultimately laying the foundations for a Southeast Science Alliance.