From Quanta to the Continuum: Opportunities for Mesoscale Science; A Report from the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee
Washington DC: U.S. Department of Energy, 2012. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Wraps. v, [1], 75, [1] pages. Illustrations (most in color). The Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (BESAC) — established on September 4, 1986 — provides valuable, independent advice to the Department of Energy on the Basic Energy Sciences program regarding the complex scientific and technical issues that arise in the planning, management, and implementation of the program. BESAC's recommendations include advice on establishing research and facilities priorities; determining proper program balance among disciplines; and identifying opportunities for interlaboratory collaboration, program integration, and industrial participation. The Committee primarily includes representatives of universities, national laboratories, and industries involved in energy-related scientific research. Particular attention is paid to obtaining a diverse membership with a balance of disciplines, interests, experiences, points of view, and geography. BESAC operates in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA, Public Law 92-463; 92nd Congress, H.R. 4383; October 6, 1972) and all applicable FACA Amendments, Federal Regulations and Executive Orders. Over the course of this study the Mesoscale Science Subcommittee of the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee engaged hundreds of colleagues in town hall meetings, webinars, and web site interactions in order to identify important and timely priority research directions for mesoscale science, as well as the capabilities required to address these challenges. This report outlines the need, the opportunities, the challenges, and the benefits of mastering mesoscale science. We are at a time of unprecedented challenge and opportunity. Our economy is in need of a jump start, and our supply of clean energy needs to dramatically increase. Innovation through basic research is a key means for addressing both of these challenges. The great scientific advances of the last decade and more, especially at the nanoscale, are ripe for exploitation. Seizing this key opportunity requires mastering the mesoscale, where classical, quantum, and nanoscale science meet. It has become clear that in many important areas the functionality that is critical to macroscopic behavior begins to manifest itself not at the atomic or nanoscale but at the mesoscale, where defects, interfaces, and non-equilibrium structures are the norm. With our recently acquired knowledge of the rules of nature that govern the atomic and nanoscales, we are well positioned to unravel and control the complexity that determines functionality at the mesoscale. The reward for breakthroughs in our understanding at the mesoscale is the emergence of previously unrealized functionality. The present report explores the opportunity and defines the research agenda for mesoscale science—discovering, understanding, and controlling interactions among disparate systems and phenomena to reach the full potential of materials complexity and functionality. The ability to predict and control mesoscale phenomena and architectures is essential if atomic and molecular knowledge is to blossom into a next generation of technology opportunities, societal benefits, and scientific advances. Condition: Very good.
Keywords: BESAC, Basic Energy Sciences, Mesoscale, Periodic Lattices, Chemical Bonds, Defect Mesostructure, Many-Body Physics, Hierarchical Functional Materials, Metastable, Coupled Reactions, Pathway-Dependent
[Book #74145]
Price: $75.00