Image of an
atomically thin coating. Image: M. Breshnehan
(August 7, 2015) The
study and development of atomically thin coatings will be the focus of a one of
a kind National Science Foundation funded university/industry center.
Led by Penn State, in collaboration with Rice University in
Houston, the Industry/University Collaborative Research Center (I/UCRC) will
design and develop advanced two-dimensional coatings engineered to solve
fundamental scientific and technological challenges that include: corrosion,
oxidation and abrasion, friction and wear, energy storage and harvesting, and
the large-scale synthesis and deposition of novel multifunctional coatings.
Two-dimensional nanoscale coating materials have unique
properties that can be exploited in glass and polymer manufacturing, automotive
and electronics sectors, civil infrastructure, and marine antifouling and
anticorrosion coatings. The Center for Atomically Thin Multifunctional Coatings
(ATOMIC) will integrate world-class research faculty at Penn State and Rice
with leading industrial partners and national laboratories.
Leading the ATOMIC center for Penn State are Mauricio
Terrones, professor of physics, professor of chemistry and professor of
materials science and engineering, and Joshua Robinson, assistant professor of
materials science and engineering and Corning Faculty Fellow. Jun Lou and
Pulickel M. Ajayan, both professors of materials science and nanoengineering,
are leading the ATOMIC center at Rice University.