Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute, UT Dallas

, Dr. Da Hsuan Feng to UTD. Welch Chair in Chemistry and directorship of the institute, both of which are held by Baughman. With the appointment of Dr. Alan MacDiarmid, who shared the 2000 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, as Chairman of the Advisory Board and Dr. Anvar Zakhidov as Professor of Physics and Associate Director, the NanoTech Institute became reality. In 2007 the UT System approved officially changing the name of the Institute to the Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute to honor the life and dedication to science and education of one of its founding members who passed away in February of the same year. Much of the fundamental science being done today will develop into useful technologies in the next twenty years. This forward-leaning characteristic fuels the institute’s strong commitment to educating and training the next generation of scientists. The NanoExplorer program introduces middle school and high school students to their first research experiences. Since the programs inception in 2002, over 130 students have had their first research experience in the Institute. These students have co-authored numerous technical presentations and journal articles, presented posters at international conferences, and won major international science competitions. The Institute also supports research at the US/Mexico border region universities – UT Pan American and UT Brownsville. This activity has resulted in two technical conference and faculty and staff exchanges between the universities. Since the NanoTech Institute’s establishment in the fall of 2001, the group has produced over 200 refereed journal articles, 13 of which have been published in Science or Nature, and given over 300 lectures both in the United States and abroad.