An Assessment of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Measurement and Standards Laboratories Fiscal Year 2001 (2001) / Chapter Skim
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6. Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory
6. Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory
Pages 163-192
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6 Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory 163
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From page 164... ...
Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Materials Reliability Division: FY2000 Programs and Accomplishments, NISTIR 6595, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md., January 2001. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Polymers Division: FY2000 Programs and Accomplishments, NISTIR 6596, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md., January 2001.
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From page 165... ...
· Microscale Measurements · Microstructure Sensing · Process Sensing and Modeling Polymers Division · Characterization and Measurement · Electronics Materials · Biomaterials · Mu ltiv ari ant Measurement Methods · Multiphase Materials · Processing Characterization Metallurgy Division · Electrochemical Processing · Magnetic Materials · Materials Performance · Materials Structure and Characterization · Metallurgical Processing NIST Center for Neutron Research · Neutron Condensed Matter Science · Research Facilities Operations · Reactor Operations and .
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Information about the center's personnel is available in the section of this chapter titled "Review of the NIST Center for Neutron Research." CThe number of full-time permanent staff is as of January of that fiscal year.
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DIVISIONAL REVIEWS Ceramics Division Technical Merit The Ceramics Division states its mission as working with industry, standards bodies, academia, and other government agencies in providing the leadership for the nation's measurements and standards infrastructure for ceramic materials. The division is organized into six groups: Ceramic Manufacturing, Phase Equilibria, Film Characterization and Properties, Materials Microstructural Characterization, Surface Properties, and Data Technologies.
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For example, the Ceramics Division's decision to direct efforts toward dielectric ceramics for wireless communications has had results. The electronics and wireless communication industries depend on decreasing component size and integration to achieve miniaturization.
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In the past year the ceramics machining program added several staff members who formerly worked on mechanical properties research. Division management must complete integration of this program, taking into account the new researchers; set clear program priorities, as the program encompasses many aspects of ceramic manufacturing; and establish specific, industrially relevant goals for projects.
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From page 170... ...
Staff are also the key organizers of workshops, including in the past yearworkshops on the use of first-nrincinle calculations for predicting physical properties and phase dia2U.S. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, NISTRecommended Practice Guide, Particle Size Characterization, NIST SP 960-1, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md., 2000.
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Division Resources Funding sources for the Ceramics Division are shown in Table 6.2. As of January 2001, staffing for the Ceramics Division included 51 full-time permanent positions, of which 43 were for technical professionals.
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The Materials Reliability Division has expanded its programs to include the electronic materials industry while continuing in several key infrastructure support efforts. The Microscale Measurements Group is working on measurement techniques for evaluating the mechanical, thermal, electrical, and magnetic behavior of thin films and coatings.
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From page 173... ...
As of January 2001, staffing for the Materials Reliability Division included 20 full-time permanent positions, of which 18 were for technical professionals. There was also 1 nonpermanent or supplemental personnel, such as a postdoctoral research associate or a temporary or part-time worker.
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Division management is concerned about its ability to retain postdoctoral research associates and develop them into permanent staff. Two associates recently left the division to pursue positions outside MSEL.
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Polymers Division Technical Merit The Polymers Division stated that its mission is to provide the standards, measurement methods, and fundamental concepts of material behavior needed for the efficient processing and use of polymers by those U.S. companies that produce, process, or use polymers in essential aspects of their business.
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From page 176... ...
Studies in progress include phase stability of polymer blends with filler addition, measurement and modeling of hybrid composites under shear loading, rheo-optical characterization of polymer mixtures under simple shear, modeling of morphology changes during processing, interaction of nanoclay particles with polymers, and constitutive relationships of polyolefin blends. The Polymers Division developed new measurement methods and SRMs for characterizing polymer processibility and performance and for improving polymer process control.
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From page 177... ...
This is a breakthrough long sought by the polymers community, which currently has no method of mass distribution characterization that does not rely on comparison to polymer standard samples that have narrow molecular mass distributions and that are chemically similar to the polymer being characterized. Program Relevance and Effectiveness The Polymers Division has successfully selected projects designed to have a significant impact on broad industry segments, to be at the cutting edge of polymer science and technology, to best utilize and develop its staff and facilities, and to have credibility with the external technical community.
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Division Resources Funding sources for the Polymers Division are shown in Table 6.4. As of January 2001, staffing for the Polymers Division included 37 full-time permanent positions, of which 32 were for technical professionals.
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The Metallurgy Division activities in hardness testing were perhaps the most traditionally NIST-like of the programs reviewed. Here the panel observed clever uses of cutting-edge technology to improve basic techniques and standard reference materials, including substantial interaction with international groups to improve consistency worldwide of measurement methods, data, and analysis.
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Division Resources Funding sources for the Metallurgy Division are shown in Table 6.5. As of January 2001, staffing for the Metallurgy Division included 38 full-time permanent positions, of which 34 were for technical
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Recent attrition in staff has been due to retirements, removal of unproductive staff, or fundingdriven reductions. The division has had no problems recruiting new talent; however, most of that new talent has come in the form of postdoctoral researchers and guest scientists rather than permanent staff.
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However, if staff attrition continues, there is a very real risk that the permanent staff will become too small or too narrow in the scope of their expertise to sustain the division's mission. MAJOR OBSERVATIONS · The work of the Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory is of high technical merit and is well recognized externally.
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Scientific projects under 4U.S. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST Center for Neutron Research: FY 2000 Programs and Accomplishments, NISTIR 6598, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md., February 2001.
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The Surface and Interfacial Science Group carries out a high-quality research program and provides a suite of state-of-the-art reflectivity instruments for users. Scientific projects include work in the areas of solid state physics and soft condensed matter science.
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In the Crystallography Group and the Diffraction Applications Group, research activities include internal staff investigations of fundamental questions, collaborative projects with other NIST scientists, and work on diffraction applications relevant to industry. Examples of these efforts include the examination of crystal structures of dielectric ceramics for wireless communications; the determination and analysis of structures of novel intermetallic and ruthenate superconductors as well as perovskite-like cuprate superconductors; the assistance provided on studies of magnetic spinets and giant and colossal magnetoresistant materials; structural studies of zeolite and molecular sieve materials; and the use of stress, texture, and elastic constants measurements to increase understanding of metal coatings and metallurgical issues.
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From page 186... ...
The liquid hydrogen cold source, which provides beams of cold neutrons for the instruments in the main beam hall, continues to deliver outstanding performance at an unprecedented availability rate. Nonetheless, NCNR staff have begun in-house design and construction of an improved liquid hydrogen source, the advanced cold source.
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The only other u.s. reactor supporting neutron research, the High Flux Isotope Reactor AFIRE at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, was shut down last October for extensive facility modifications and upgrades, and it is uncertain when the facility will become operational again.
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In collaboration with their broad user community, the NCNR staff produce a wide array of scientific results. The specific activities presented to the subpanel were uniformly interesting and of high quality, and the overall importance of the research projects done at NCNR is attested to by the long list of publications in peer-reviewed journals.
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Resources Funding sources for the NIST Center for Neutron Research are shown in Table 6.6. As of January 2001, staffing for the NIST Center for Neutron Research included 92 full-time permanent positions, of which 86 were for technical professionals.
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Hiring postdoctoral fellows and bringing in term appointments can also be a useful mechanism for providing periodic revitalization. The overall staffing levels for crystallography projects seem adequate, but the work on diffraction applications appears to be slightly understaffed.
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The decision not to rush any of the key safety and quality assurance steps involved in design and construction of the source or the tower is another indication that NCNR management continues to make safe operation of the reactor its highest priority. Major Observations of the Subpanel The subpanel presents the following major observations: · World-class neutron science is being performed at the NCNR, which supports a very large and technically diverse user community.
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