Groundbreaking for the new science and mathematics building at IUP hasn’t even happened yet and the construction won’t be complete until 2022, but the university already has a new piece of high-tech equipment for it. Geosciences faculty member Dr. Nick Deardorff has secured a $425,829 grant from the National Science Foundation and it’s been used to purchase a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM).
The SEM does very high resolution detailed images of small objects. It’s a piece that typically is found at top research universities, according to Deardorff, and will allow faculty to do higher-quality research as well as train students in the use of microanalytical equipment.
The SEM was installed at Weyandt Hall in May but will have its permanent home in a special room in the John J. and Char Kopchick College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics building, once it’s ready for occupancy.
