MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of a 500 MHz NMR Spectrometer to Enhance Research and Student Training Capabilities at San Jose State University and Neighboring Institutions

This award is jointly supported by the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) and Chemistry Research Instrumentation programs. San José State University (SJSU) is acquiring a 500 MHz nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer with a 2-channel broadband probe to support the research of Professor Madalyn R. Radlauer, along with colleagues Ningkun Wang, Philip T. Dirlam, Gilles Muller, and Laura C. Miller Conrad. This instrument greatly expands and modernizes NMR capabilities bolstering research and training efforts and enables curricular enhancement in science and engineering. The instrument is the first NMR housed in the dedicated NMR facility in the new Interdisciplinary Science Building at SJSU. Numerous research programs from the SJSU, and neighboring Santa Clara University (SCU) active in both research and teaching are enabled by the instrument Additionally, research scientists at NASA Ames Research Center, local community colleges (Foothill College and De Anza College), and a teacher from Los Altos High School use the NMR for research purposes and to collect data for courses at their schools. This instrument especially impacts undergraduate training through both research and coursework. Also, as SJSU serves a diverse student body, a majority of the impacted students are from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in STEM. The acquired 500 MHz NMR instrument supports research in a range of disciplines. It provides high resolution spectra, observation of a wide range of nuclei, variable temperature capabilities, and significantly improved automation, enabling new research directions at SJSU. This instrument enables the development and examination of (1) organometallic catalysts within polymer scaffolds; (2) polymer-supported hypervalent iodine reagents; (3) small molecule antibacterial agents; (4) Ln(III) complexes as chiral structural probes; (5) protein conformational dynamics; (6) stable free radicals; (7) ubiquitin conjugated proteins; (8) artificial intelligence to probe time domain NMR signals; (9) novel plant natural products from California native plants; (10) protometabolic systems chemistry; (11) climate impacts of organic chemistry in atmospheric aerosols and clouds; (12) multidimensional coherent spectroscopy across the electromagnetic spectrum; (13) microbial metabolites and cell composition; (14) organometallic complexes, peptidomimetics, and nanomaterials at SCU; and (15) studies within the space science division at Ames. In addition, students benefit from either hands-on training or data collected from this instrument for their coursework annually. In response to global helium supply challenges, the acquisition of this instrument includes a superconducting magnet with a low loss cryostat reducing the institution’s consumption of helium. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.