A press conference at which an initiative for a New Mexico nanotechnology center is expected to be proposed, as well as plans for engineering design of the proposed $400 million MESA complex, will take place at 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 14, at Sandia’s Steve Schiff Auditorium. There will also be a brief description of the day’s science program. Posters of scientific interest will be displayed. Media representatives interested in attending should contact Iris Aboytes at 505-844-2282.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A Science Day on Dec. 14 at Sandia National Laboratories that focuses on nanotechnology will include discussions on the status of a proposed nanotechnology center for New Mexico, new funding for engineering design of the multimillion dollar MESA (Microsystems and Engineering Sciences Applications) complex, and advances in the nanotechnology field.
The day’s events run from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Steve Schiff Auditorium. Those with science interests are invited to come early and stay late.
The initiatives will boost the City of Albuquerque’s Next Generation Economy Initiative, one of whose tiers is microsystems.
The science discussions are expected to showcase cutting edge research done in basic science and technology at Sandia, a Department of Energy (DOE) laboratory.
DOE investments in the latest equipment for the national labs are considered crucial to attract top university graduates to do top-quality science.
MESA, a proposed $400 million complex, is expected to make major advances in the ability of the United States to devise and use microsystems for military and commercial systems.
A Center for Integrated Nanotechnology, if approved, would function with sites coordinated between Albuquerque and Los Alamos. The Albuquerque site would be shared by Sandia and the University of New Mexico and the Los Alamos site would be operated by Los Alamos National Laboratory.
General John Gordon, head of the new National Nuclear Security Administration, to which the two New Mexico DOE defense labs and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory now report, will speak about the role of science in DOE, NNSA, and Sandia. Dr. Mildred Dresselhaus, an MIT professor who is head of DOE’s Office of Science, will speak about DOE perspectives and challenges. Sandia President C. Paul Robinson will offer an overview, and Sandia Vice President and chief technology officer Al Romig will discuss possible future technologies.
Also speaking on the future of science and technology will be 1996 chemistry Nobel laureate Richard E. Smalley of Rice University, who with colleagues created the soccer-ball-shaped array of carbon molecules dubbed “buckyballs.” Paul Alivisatos of the University of California at Berkeley, and Evelyn Hu, University of California at Santa Barbara also will speak.
Nanostructures are so small that, next to them, red blood cells look like skyscrapers. Sandia scientists will discuss new methods they have discovered to force such materials to self-assemble into large groups, and how nanotechnology can be used from biotechnology to corrosion prevention to lowering the cost of transmitting phone messages.