MSE Seminar: “Nanoscience and Quantum Information Science at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials, a National Scientific User Facility”

The Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) is a national scientific user facility operated at Brookhaven National Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy. One of five DOE Nanoscale Science Research Centers, the CFN offers external users a supported research experience with top-caliber scientists and access to state-of-the-art instrumentation at no cost via a peer- reviewed proposal process. The CFN mission is advancing nanoscience to impact society, by being an essential resource for the nanoscience community and producing breakthroughs in nanomaterials research. In this presentation Dr. Black will give an overview of the scientific facilities, describe examples of user and staff research, and summarize the process of becoming a CFN user.

He will also provide a brief overview of the system of DOE National Laboratories, their scientific mission, and the role of the Labs in the research ecosystem of the United States. For students and early career researchers, he will share perspectives on the unique aspects of pursuing a research career in the National Labs.

Finally, Dr. Black will also discuss the U.S. National Quantum Initiative Act passed by Congress in late 2018 and the roles of different federal agencies. Brookhaven Lab has mobilized in broad support of multiple aspects of this important national initiative, including: quantum technologies and experimental methods, computer and computational science, and basic materials science. The CFN and the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) are integral to Brookhaven’s contributions to quantum information science, bringing advanced capabilities for synthesis and characterization for today’s quantum materials, and developing new, needed infrastructure for designing tomorrow’s quantum materials from the ground up, with quantum properties in mind.

Dr. Charles (Chuck) Black is a Senior Scientist and Director of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials, a national scientific user facility operated at Brookhaven National Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy. Each year, the CFN supports the science of nearly 600 researchers from universities, industry, and national laboratories worldwide.
Prior to becoming Director, Dr. Black was Group Leader for CFN Electronic Nanomaterials, leading a research program exploring nanostructured materials for solar energy conversion.
From 1996 to 2006, Dr. Black was a Research Staff Member at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York. While at IBM he pioneered the use of polymer self-assembly as a high-resolution patterning materials for fabrication of semiconductor electronics.
During his career, Dr. Black has also performed experimental research on ferroelectric non-volatile memories, nanocrystal-based electronic devices, superconductivity in metal nanoparticles, single-electron tunneling devices, and low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy.
Dr. Black earned the Ph.D. degree in Physics from Harvard University in 1996, and B.S. degrees in Physics and Mathematics from Vanderbilt University in 1991. Dr. Black has been a Member of the Board of Directors of the Materials Research Society (2015–17), is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, and is a Senior Member of the IEEE.