1. 2016 MRSEC Director’s Annual Meeting
NSF/ Division of Materials Research (DMR)
Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC)
October 18, 2016
Dan Finotello (PD)

2. 10/15 – 10/16 MRSEC Personnel
A. Caro (Oct. 2015, LANL): Solicitation, Annual Reports, 2nd Year Site Visits. PD for PREM
M. Deutsch (Jan. 2016, Oregon): MRSEC Competition: Compliance, Panels. PD for EPM
B. Schwenzer (Jul. 2016, PNNL): MRSEC Competition: Compliance, Panels. PD for SSMC
S. Dexheimer (Jul. 2016, Washington State): MRSEC Competition: Compliance, Panels. PD for REU/CMP/DMREF
D. Abhat-Tonse & A. Tonse (April 2016): Web Design & Implementation; mrsec.org, mrfn.org, prem.org, and mips.org?? Google Statistics hard copy available

3. Division of Materials Research (DMR)
Administrative Workflow
Linda Sapochak, DD
Sean L. Jones, ADDD
Velma Lawson, PSM
Neila Odom-Jefferson, OS
Back up: Benita
Back up: Elaine
Back up: Denese
Back up: Renee
Back up: Allison
Back up: Meghan
Back up: Claudia
Back up: Aubrie
Vacant
Vacant
Allison Smith, PS
Denese Williams, PA
Elaine Washington, PS
Meghan Ackerman, PS
Benita Fair, PS
Renee Ivey, PS
Student PA
Aubrie TenEyck,
Contractor
Claudia Johnson, Contractor
Recruitment Mgt. Support
Program Budget
CGIs
IAAs
Data Analysis
DMR Highlights
Refreshment Orders
Panel Spreadsheet
IAA
Admin Review
DMR Highlights
Outreach
Program Budget
CGIs
Admin Review
Order Supplies
Backup Timekeeper
Program Budget
CGIs
Admin Review
Technology Trainer
Web Updates
Listserv
Outreach
Admin Review
Timekeeper
Order Supplies
IAA
Program Budget
CGIs
Equip. Excess
Program Budget
CGIs
IAAs
Record Retirement
Program Budget
CGIs
IAAs
Record Retirement
Program Budget
CGIs
IAAs
COV
IT Support
Data Analysis
Trainer
National Facilities M
Designing Materials to Revolutionize and Eng. Our Future
Materials Research Science & Eng. Centers
Electronic & Phonic Materials
Condensed Matter & Materials Theory
Polymers
Biomaterials
Ceramics XC
NIST
I-Corps
Guebre Tessema
CIF 21
Daniele Finotello
BSF XC
Daryl Hess
Andrew Lovinger
Joseph Akkara
Lynnette Madsen
John Schlueter XC
NANO
Miriam Deutsch
MIP
INFEWS
Solid-State & Materials Chemistry XC QL
DMR Initiatives
BSF Binational Science Foundation
CIF Cyberinfrastructure Framework
21st
INFEWS - Innovation at the Nexus of
Food, Energy, and Water
I-Corps - Innovation Corps
INT International
QL Quantum Leap
MIP Materials Innovation Platforms
MRI Major Research Instrumentation
NANO Nanotechnology
NIST National Institute of Standards &
Technology
NSCI National Strategic Computing
Initiative
SNM Scalable Nanomanufacturing
XC Cross-Cutting Activities
Charles Ying
Susan Dexheimer
Birgit Schwenzer
SNM QL
Alex Klironomos
Condensed Matter Physics
Alex Simonian
DATA
Tania Paskova
INT XC
MRI
Metals & Metallic Nanostructures
NSCI QL XC
Leonard Spinu
Birgit Schwenzer
Tomasz Durakiewicz
DMR Front Desk Support
REU Sites
PREM
SNM XC XC
Expert XC
Eugene Zubarev
Jose Alfredo Caro
Diana Farkas
Paul Sokol
Jose Alfredo Caro XC QL XC QL
Juan Nino
Freddy Khoury
Created by: Velma Lawson, Sept. 9, 2016
Susan Dexheimer
Susan Dexheimer
Supports DMR-wide Programs

4. 10/15 – 10/16 MRSEC Year Review
2nd Year Site Visits (Class of 2014): 12 visits from March 10 to May 18: D. Finotello and A. Caro
Supplements: Outreach/Recruiting; Science Communication; Students w Disabilities
Annual/Final Reports (~30): DF and AC
2016 MRSEC Competition Solicitation ( A. Caro, C. Ying and L. Sapochak): Published March 1, 2016.

5. MRSEC History 1960-61 - Interdisciplinary Research Labs (IDLs) -ARPA
Proposal to transfer IDLs to NSF as a result of the Mansfield Amendment
NSF establishes DMR, MRL program
DMR establishes MRG program
DMR establishes MRSEC program
DMR requests a study of the MRSEC program by the National Academies
DMR establishes CEMRI (2+ IRGs) and MIRT programs
DMR drops CEMRI/MIRT nomenclature and returns program name back to MRSEC with no small group competition and no 1 IRG MRSEC; 2 – 5 IRGs.
2016 – MRSEC: 2-3 IRGs.
DMR = NSF Division of Materials Research
ARPA = Advanced Research Project Agency
IDL Interdisciplinary Laboratory
MRL = Materials Research Laboratory
MRG = Materials Research Group

6. MRSEC & Other NSF Centers
2011
CEMRI/MIRT
2014
IDL/MRL University
Year Initiated
Cornell
1960
Pennsylvania
Northwestern
Chicago
1961
Harvard
MIT
Pennsylvania State
1974
Ohio State
1982

7. MRSEC Program Goals / Achievements
No dept. boundaries: Stimulate and support outstanding interdisciplinary research and education in materials of a scope and complexity that requires a center. All students, in or out of MRSEC benefit from it.
Critical mass of investigators of complementary/diverse expertise
Address fundamental, complex materials problems that are intellectually challenging and important to society
Foster partnerships between academia and industry, National labs, and international
Broadening participation (PREM); Outreach
Re-competition model and Seed program provide a mechanism for a reinvention and adaptation to address emerging areas (flexibility)
Leveraging of funds; Attract faculty
Materials Network Facilities Network, mrfn.org

8. Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRG): Core Unit
Each IRG:
Addresses a major materials topic or area synergistically
Is more than a ‘collection of individual investigators’
Typical IRG effort includes synthesis, theory, characterization, evaluation, and maybe applications
IRGs map onto Individual Investigator Programs; MRSEC may contain dissimilar IRGs: a unique center feature.
Interaction within an IRG is critical; Interaction among IRGs not required.
Collectively, the MRSEC IRG topics cover the entire research breadth that DMR addresses as a division

9. MRSEC Awards Features
Six year awards, $56M total in 2014/15/16; Individual Center support from $1.6M to $3.53M (FY14 includes iSuperSeed)
Annual PI meetings (October 18, 2016)
Program Director “only” Site Visit in year 2 (12 in 2016)
Site visit review with a panel of experts during year 4 (12 Site Visits planned in Mar. – Jun. 2018)
Existing MRSEC compete
with new proposals in
open competition
Education Directors
Meeting 11/2/2016 U Penn
SVR= Site Visit Report
RSV= Reverse Site Visit

10. MRSEC Expenditures 2016 % of Fixed Total Budget, $56 M/yr
Majority of Research funds (IRGs + Seeds) pay for Graduate student and Post-doc salaries.

11. 2016 MRSEC Supplement Support
He4 Recovery Systems (DMR allocates $1M per year): $300,000
Webmaster for mrsec.org, mrfn.org, prem.org, mips.org: $25,000
Science Slam/Students w Disabilities/LoM/Recruiting: $149,000
Total 2016 MRSEC Investment: $56,474,000

12. High Impact 21 MRSECs (2016) 56 IRGs
926 publications (42% 2+ authors)(range 20% - 56%)
49 patents awarded (the yearly ave.)
21 MRSEC (2016)
796 (608) supported TTF participants (21-27%F; 8-10%URM); 28% PHY, 21.5% CHE, 17.7% MS, 10.3% each EE & CE
836 GS (25.1% F, 7.7% URM)+ 180 UGS (46% F, 16% URM)
298 Post-docs (24.8% F, 7.7% URM)

13. Education Outreach, Developing a Diverse Workforce (2016)
Extensive Education Programs (21 MRSEC)
MRSEC REU (250), RET (56)
900,000’s impacted K-12+ outreach
Broadening Participation
Diversity Strategic Plan
PREM: Currently 12
Extensive Ind. Collaborations
A (1380); NL (114); Ind. (318); Int. (150)
Building a National Network
Education Coordinators Network
Materials Research Facilities Network

14. Infrastructure mrfn.org >1140 Instruments
MRFN Statistics
23 centers instruments 255 experts
Recently added instruments
Thermogravimetric Analyzer
Thermogravimetric Analyzer Mass Spectrometer
Infrastructure mrfn.org >1140 Instruments
Yearly Users of MRSEC Facilities
> 1380 Academic
> 530 Industry
>50 National Labs
743 Publications acknowledged MRSEC SF
75 MRSEC Technical Staff in SEFs
31 Other Technicians
51 Administrative Staff
37 Education Staff

15. MRSEC Startup Companies
Innovation
MRSEC Startup Companies
Since 1985: 146 companies in 22 states plus 3 abroad employing > 2520 individuals. More than 1500 patents awarded

16. 2016 2nd Year Site Visits to Class of 2014 Awardees
12 Site Visits took place from March 10 - May 16, 2016
Agenda
8:30 – 9:00 Informal Meeting NSF PDs & MRSEC Director
9:00 – 9:05 Introductions
9: :00 am: Overview of the MRSEC by the Director
10-10:15 am Coffee Break
10:15 – 11:20 IRGs & SEEDs
11:20 – 11:50 Education & Outreach
12:00-1:05 pm – Lunch with MRSEC students and post-docs
1:15-2:15 pm - Shared Experimental Facilities Tour
2:15-3:00 pm – NSF Panel caucus
3:00 – 3:30 – NSF PDs debrief MRSEC Executive Committee
Potential Changes:
Informal Meeting replaced with Panel Orientation
Replace Tour with Poster Session
Add Panel only Meeting after IRGs/Seeds presentation
Report mostly on IRGs and Seeds
Submit Comments

17. Post Award Management: Site Visits
4th Year Site Visits with Full Panel, Class of 2014:
March to June 2017; 2 days
5-8 panelists NSF Program Directors
Report Written/Completed on site; Response to Site Visit Report (SVR)
SVR shared with Reviewers at 2019 MRSEC Competition Reverse Site Visit

18. 2016 – 2019 Annual Report Guidelines Hard Copies Available
Final Report = Last Annual Report Annual Report = 12 months timeframe; NOT CUMULATIVE May 2016: Submitted for Public Comment July 2016: Submitted to OMB for Approval September 2016: OMB approved them as submitted Changes: Clarified Language and Definitions; New Highlights Template; 508 Public Law

19. 2016 MRSEC Competition Solicitation Published: March, 2016
Pre-Proposals Due Date: July 1, 2016
Panels evaluate IRGs
Panels: 7 panels, September 7 – 30, 2016
Full Proposal Invitations: ed October 6, 2016
Full Proposals Due Date: December 2, 2016
Mail Review
Reverse Site Visits:
Invitations: Mid March 2017
Panels: Mid April to Mid May 2017
To DGA: First week in June

20. 2016 MRSEC Solicitation / 2015 COV MRSEC Remarks www. nsf
2016 MRSEC Solicitation / 2015 COV MRSEC Remarks
The MRSEC program was viewed as an outstanding example of a program that defines and advances frontier topics in basic materials science, and closely couples such basic discovery with innovations that address societal needs.
The COV is deeply concerned regarding the sizes of awards. The sizes of awards have not kept pace with inflation or the increasing cost of supporting graduate students and, consequently, the buying power of the funds flowing to individual research groups from DMR grants (in single investigator grants as well as MRSEC grants) has eroded to the point that, in some cases, they do not permit full support of even a single graduate student. It was also commented that the buying power of awards has diminished to the point where most graduate students are partially supported on multiple grants.
The COV found a number of instances where comments from reviewers are directed more toward the reputation and visibility of the PIs rather than toward the proposed research.
The COV encourages DMR to consider exploring ways to level the playing field for new MRSEC proposals while maintaining the highest quality scientific standards and expectations on broader impact.
Specific to the MRSEC, the role of seed/superseed projects was viewed by the COV as extremely important to maintaining the cutting-edge position of these centers. It was felt that an increase in the budget of seed programs in MRSECs would help promote further the evolution of the centers and their ability to response to emerging materials research challenges.
Strategic planning in the MRSEC program office should help guide the portfolio development.

21. 2015 MRSEC iSuperSEED Supplements: 2017?
The Materials Research Science and Engineering Center program of the Division of Materials Research is making available, depending on funds availability, 3-4 iSuperSEEDs. The iSuperSEED topics of interest must be part of the DMR research portfolio of interest, and for this call they are:
Topological Insulators. Theory leading experiment efforts focusing on but not limited to dichalcogenides, Majorana fermions, Weyl semi metals are welcome topics.
Quantum Information Science. Topics may include (but not limited to) developing materials, techniques and classical simulation methods for controlled evolution of quantum mechanical states of multiple to many qubit systems utilizing existing qubit technologies, such as quantum dots, superconducting qubits (e.g.transmons and fluxonium), nitrogen vacancy centers, optically-active defects (color centers), quantum cavities, nanomechanical qubits and hybrid qubits
BRAIN-related studies (see Alivisatos et al., Nanotools for Neuroscience and Brain, VOL. 7, # 3, 1850–1866 (2013),  for definitions and appropriate research topics)
Sustainable Materials (see DMR DCL NSF14-077)
4 funded at $250,000 each

22. 2007 NRC Report on the MRSEC Program https://www. nap
“The MRSEC program produces excellent, frontier science of the same high standard as that supported by NSF through other mechanisms.”
(but)
“The effectiveness of MRSECs has been reduced in recent years by increasing requirements without a commensurate increase in resources. Increasing the mean grant size is necessary to allow the program to fulfill its important mission goals.”

23. 2016 MRSEC Prel. Prop. Competition
Topics were sought that solve fundamental, timely and complex materials problems that are intellectually challenging, important to society, and that potentially broaden the current portfolio.
Topics to expand the MRSEC research portfolio were noted in the Solicitation as per COV comments (1st time).
Preliminary proposals reviewed based on the IRGs research topics, thus the IRGs in a MRSEC proposal may be reviewed by different panels. Most reviewed in at least 2 panels
7 panels based on research topics.

24. 2016 MRSEC Competition: Review Process
Preliminary Proposals: Onsite Panel Review; 7 Topical Panels Panel A: 9/7 - 8/2016 Panel B: 9/12-13/2016 Panel C: 9/15-16/2016 Panel D: 9/19-20/2016 Panel E: 9/22-23/2016 Panel F: 9/26-27/2016 Panel G: 9/29-30/2016

25. Summary 2016 MRSEC Competition <$21M available for awards
The review process involved 89 onsite panelists; these included 24 female, 5 from underrepresented groups, 2 from national labs and 1 person with disabilities.
An additional 11 ad-hoc mail reviewers provided 15 IRG reviews, which complemented the panelists' reviews.
A total 885 reviews were submitted corresponding to an average of 4.3 reviews per IRG.
Decisions: IRG Invite or Not Invite IRGs.