Grant: Major Facilities Access Grants

The Pacific Centre for Advanced Materials and Microstructures (PCAMM) http://www.sfu.ca/physics/PCAMM/ is a collaborative organization consisting of key major equipment items for materials research located in the Science Centre at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and in the Advanced Materials & Process Engineering Laboratory (AMPEL) building at the University of British Columbia (UBC). The primary goal of PCAMM is to optimize capabilities between the two universities, and to achieve a critical mass of facilities to enable its users to develop new optical, electronic and magnetic devices, and to contribute to many other areas of materials science and engineering. PCAMM was formulated in 1996 from complementary expertise and equipment in surface science and epitaxial growth. It has steadily strengthened and broadened from its core base so that it can now comprehensively address wide-ranging problems of the highest scientific and practical importance associated with advanced materials and microstructures. This facility was greatly boosted by a CFI award in 2001 ($8.3M total) from which a range of new equipment items were added beginning in 2002.  There was additional growth in 2004 with the CFI award of a new laboratory for electronic materials and devices at SFU (4D Labs) and the expansion of AMPEL at UBC.  PCAMM depends critically on the continuing presence of experienced personnel for operation and maintenance as well as upgrades of minor equpiment. The latter provides the crucial reason why MFA support is required for this major regional facility.