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Editorial:
Materials Research
at ORNL:
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Jim
Roberto
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New materials have always charted the progress of civilization. Successive advances in materials ushered in the Bronze and Iron ages. The Industrial Revolution was underpinned by the development of materials that allowed the efficient operation of machines. The Information Age is based on the ability to control the electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of materials on the microscale. And we stand now on the threshold of a Second Industrial Revolution, enabled by the science and technology of materials on the nanoscale.
As a leading materials research and development (R&D) laboratory, ORNL combines materials synthesis, processing, and characterization, along with theory and modeling, to address some of the greatest intellectual and technological challenges of our time. From the Nobel Prize–winning development of neutron scattering to the commercialization of high-performance alloys and ceramics, ORNL has been at the frontier of materials science and technology. From the vantage point of this distinguished past we see an even brighter future, enabled by an outstanding staff and an unsurpassed collection of materials research tools.
Materials R&D at ORNL is not only materials science and condensed matter physics, but it is also chemistry, computational science, biology, engineering, and energy technology. The integration of fundamental and applied research in an interdisciplinary environment characterizes materials research at ORNL.
This issue of the ORNL Review heralds a new era of materials R&D at ORNL. Over the next several years, an array of Department of Energy materials research facilities will come on line at the Laboratory, including the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences (CNMS), upgrades at the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR), and the Advanced Materials Characterization Laboratory (AMCL). These facilities, combined with multi-terascale computing at DOE’s Center for Computational Sciences, will provide unprecedented opportunities for advances in materials and other fields.
ORNL will become the world’s leading center for neutron science when the SNS is completed in 2006. Neutron scattering is a uniquely powerful tool for studying the structure and dynamics of materials and biological systems on the atomic and molecular scale. The pulsed-neutron-scattering capabilities of SNS will be the best in the world, complemented by world-class facilities for the steady-state neutron scattering currently being developed at HFIR.
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The linac tunnel (shown here) will be home to the linear accelerator of the Spallation Neutron Source at ORNL.
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ORNL will become a leading center for nanoscale science and technology when CNMS is completed in late 2004. This 80,000-square-foot laboratory–office complex will include state-of-the-art facilities for nanoscale materials synthesis, fabrication, and characterization. CNMS will be unique in its integration of synthesis science, neutron science, and theory and modeling to address challenges in the nanoscale science and technology of both hard and soft materials.
The AMCL, to be completed in late 2003, will provide the vibration and field-free environment necessary to support the next generation of materials microcharacterization equipment. Two subangstrom electron microscopes are being developed for this facility. The higher resolution of these instruments is essential to studies of catalysis, grain boundaries, interfaces, and defects in materials. ORNL has long focused on developing “hard” materials for use in advanced energy and transportation technologies. These materials have included metallic alloys, such as ferritic and austenitic steels; nickel and iron aluminides; ceramics; and bulk metallic glasses. We combine ceramic and metallic materials in our unique high-temperature superconducting tapes. Additionally, our work with industry at the High Temperature Materials Laboratory has resulted in better casting processes, more reliable air bags, and safer paper mills.
We continue to study and develop “soft” materials, as well, ranging from carbon nanofibers to polymers. One exciting ORNL soft material is graphite foam, which exhibits unusually high heat transfer capabilities. It’s one of several novel materials developed here that show great promise for homeland security (see Novel Materials for Homeland Security).
This issue highlights many other of our successes, as well, such as the first three-dimensional X-ray diffraction pattern of materials at a submicron resolution and the transformation of ordinary steels into extraordinary materials that show great promise for high-temperature applications. At our Infrared Processing Center, we are using one of the world’s most powerful lamps to make thin metallic sheets from powder and longer-lasting, wear- and corrosion-resistant coatings. We are exploring ways to produce carbon nanotubes, purify them, and align them to make stronger structural materials. And we are advancing the science of nanomagnetism and complex oxide materials, with important implications for information processing, superconductivity, and sensors.
This is an extraordinary time for materials research at ORNL. We are creating a future of unparalleled opportunities—a future enriched by our past, enabled by outstanding staff and unmatched facilities, and strengthened by an interdisciplinary culture and partnerships with universities and industry. From characterization to synthesis to theory and modeling, ORNL is advancing the Age of Materials.
Related Web Sites
| Associate Laboratory Director for Physical Sciences |
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Web site provided by Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Communications and External Relations |
