Participant Support for Students to Attend the International Conference and Workshop on Mxenes; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; 5-7 August 2024

This award provides participant support for attendees of the International Conference and Workshop on MXenes: Changing the World to be held at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA, USA, from August 5-7, 2024. The workshop focuses on the latest research and development activities in MXenes, a relatively novel 2D nanomaterial. Through oral and poster sessions, selected students, faculty, and prominent researchers present their latest research results in the areas of materials science, materials chemistry, materials processing, and advanced manufacturing of MXenes. To ensure diversity in participation at the conference, priority is given to women and underrepresented minority students. This award benefits the nation through the education of a skilled nanomaterials and manufacturing workforce, which is better prepared to provide transformative solutions to the challenges in their chosen fields. The conference plays a significant role in supporting and sustaining the important field of MXenes, a technology that is pervasive and impacts all industrial sectors with benefits to society. This conference is timely because of strong interest in the U.S in fostering the research and development of this family of technologically important novel nanomaterials that exhibit many useful and unique properties and potentially useful applications. This participant support is expected to benefit the students' professional, scientific, and technical development. Attendance at the conference gives the students a broader view of nanomaterials chemistry, ceramics, advanced manufacturing, their fundamentals, and applications. Workshop topics include contextualization of major MXene discoveries, identification of basic research areas, diversified education in novel 2D nanomaterials, and promotion of technological potential. Attendees learn about state-of-the-art research in their technical areas via access to several technical and professional development talks by leading domestic and international speakers. The broader impact activities include education outreach, knowledge transfer and skill development, diversity, equity and inclusion, industrial collaboration, global collaboration and leadership, and public engagement. Students enhance their communication skills through oral and poster presentations and in-depth discussions of their work with peers in their technical areas. This interactive experience significantly broadens student education, increases their enthusiasm for their research topic, acquaints them with expectations for scientific careers, and exposes them to novel approaches for innovative research. The conference also offers a foundational course on MXene synthesis. 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.