10+ YEARS OF UNDERGRADUATE EPMA FOR TEACHING AND RESEARCH – HISTORY AND IMPACT

In 2010, Concord University established an electron microprobe (EPMA) laboratory, the first that we know of at a primarily undergraduate university. Taking on such an effort at a small, state university can certainly be described as "non-traditional." Yet, ready access to on-site instrumentation provides significant advantages, and the Concord EPMA lab has been a resounding success, supporting innovations in undergraduate teaching and research for the past decade. It is part of a suite of instruments used by programs in chemistry, geology, and physics that we’ve been developing since the late 1990s.

At the lab’s core is an upgraded ARL SEMQ electron microprobe located in a dedicated ground-floor facility. In its current configuration, the microprobe is equipped with 6 WDS spectrometers, a modern 30mm² silicon drift detector EDS spectrometer, a large high-sensitivity backscatter electron detector, digital image acquisition, re-designed sample positioning, and a vibration isolation platform. Automation and data acquisition are provided by Probe for EPMA and Bruker Esprit running under Windows 10 on current PC hardware. The instrument is supplemented by a sample preparation lab, Horiba XGT-5200 micro-XRF, petrographic microscopes, high-resolution scanner for full thin section scans, and a collection of more than 300 micro-analytical reference materials for calibration and quality control. Major- and trace-element analysis, electron imaging, and EDS x-ray mapping are conducted routinely with excellent results. Development of these capabilities has been possible through numerous grants, lab revenues, and institutional funds.

This infrastructure affords outstanding opportunities for our students who have taken to the available capabilities with enthusiasm. The microprobe is integrated into the curriculum at all levels, even introductory general education courses. It also supports independent research by students, faculty, and visitors, and it has enabled faculty to obtain multiple research grants. Among these is an NSF IUSE project to implement and study an innovative curriculum with undergraduate research embedded across a 5-course sequence. This has made it possible to bring multi-semester research experiences and related skill development to 100% of our geoscience majors.