Ogden News

WKU’s NOVA Center and the Kentucky EPSCoR and NanoNet programs will host the first Kentucky Nanotechnology Symposium.

The two-day conference will be held Friday and Saturday (March 30-31) at the Knicely Conference Center at WKU’s South Campus. The conference program and presentations will begin at 8 a.m. both days.

The symposium is open to all scientists, engineers and students from a wide range of disciplines involved in microtechnology, nanotechnology and advanced materials. The symposium also promises to expand the awareness of core facilities that exist within the region and cultivate new research collaborations.

Keynote speakers include: Dr. Todd Hastings, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Kentucky; Kenneth Herwig, Spallation Neutron Source, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Dr. Kevin Walsh, Samuel T. Fife Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Director of Lutz Microfabrication at University of Louisville; Dr. Takeshi Egami, Joint Institute for Neutron Sciences, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee; Dr. Aniketa Shinde, Education/Outreach Coordinator, WVNano Initiative;  and Dr. John D. Williams, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alabama in Huntsville.

“This symposium is a significant event in that we are the first ones to host this kind of event that is meant to not only attract nanotechnology research scientists from around the Southeast, but also to establish and strengthen research partnerships within the Commonwealth’s Kentucky NanoNet,” said Dr. Edward Kintzel, NOVA Center director.

The NOVA (Nondestructive Analysis) Center, located at WKU’s Center for Research and Development on the corner of Nashville Road and Campbell Lane, features a Large Chamber Scanning Electron Microscope (LC-SEM). The acquisition of the LC-SEM has positioned WKU as the only university in North America with an instrument of this type and as a leader in nondestructive analysis testing.

Conference participants will tour the NOVA Center and WKU’s Center for Research and Development on Saturday afternoon.

For more about the conference, visit the NOVA Center website at www.largechamber.com or call (270) 745-NOVA.

Contact: Ed Kintzel, (270) 745-6682.