The successful grant proposal was led by researchers from the College of Engineering and Computer Sciences (CECS) and the College of Science (COS.) They are:
· Principal Investigator – Dr. Iyad Hijazi (CECS)
· Co-Principal Investigator – Dr. Rosalynn Quinones-Fernandez (COS)
· Co-Principal Investigator – Dr. Nasim Nosoudi (CECS)
· Co-Principal Investigator – Dr. Mohammed Ferdjallah (CECS)
· Co-Principal Investigator – Dr. Kim Kunkler (COS)
Dr. Wesley Stites, dean of the College of Science, says the new instrument will make a dramatic difference.
“This cutting-edge instrument replaces a workhorse X-ray powder diffraction instrument that was used in the college of science in the 1970’s,” Stites said. “Imagine looking at the pattern of light on the floor after coming through a set of blinds and using that pattern and the angle of the floor and sun to figure out what the blinds look like. This instrument does that with X-rays and the tiny, repeating patterns inside a material.”
Stites said their collaborative efforts, along with contributions from other dedicated team members, have secured this vital funding for research capabilities at the university.
“The advanced detector and the powerful software for data analysis are an amazing improvement,” Stites said. This machine is going to be very useful for engineers, forensic scientists, biomedical researchers and materials scientists. I predict it is going to be very busy”.
The Rigaku SmartLab SE X-ray diffractometer is designed primarily for materials analysis, including powder diffraction, small-angle scattering and thin-film analysis. This versatile instrument will be an invaluable tool for researchers across multiple departments interested in the structure and composition of materials.
For more information on the equipment, visit the Rigaku site. For a closer look at the research and efforts of the Marshall University Research Corporation, visit www.marshall.edu/murc/.