The 2013 EUV ERC REU program will run from June 3^rd through August 9^th at all 3 locations: The University of California at Berkeley, The University of Colorado at Boulder and Colorado State, Fort Collins. Summer projects at each site are different depending on the research and engineering expertise of the Primary Investigator (PI) that runs the laboratory but the results of each project contribute to the overall research and engineering goals of the EUV ERC. Applicants are encouraged to state their preference for location in their personal essay.

UC Berkeley: Dr. Steve Leone is a Professor in the Chemistry and Physics Departments.
Leone Group Webpage

      REU project Topic:    EUV transient absorption of small molecule photodissociation dynamics and vibrational superpositions, photoelectron analysis of surface catalysis, and semiconductor photoexcitation dynamics.

CU Boulder: Drs. Margaret Murnane and Henry Kapteyn are both Professors in the Physics Departments and JILA fellow’s.
KMGroup Webpage

Colorado State University, Fort Collins: Dr. Jorge Rocca is a Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.
 Rocca Webpage

Research and networking
- Weekly video meetings with the REUs and faculty from all 3 Sites
- Daily meetings with Mentor
- Directed research as part of a team to develop inter-personnel skills
Learning and career information
- Four safety training courses: lasers, chemicals, high voltage & machine shop
- Regular practice for presentation Weekly seminars on photonics, graduate school preparation, industry & ethics
Outreach
- Support to communicate summer experience to home institute
- Frequent opportunities to teach high-school students
Weekly Lab or Industry Tour

David N. Hill (Morehouse College)

My project consists of studying the effect of EUV laser irradiation on dielectric coatings. I am also involved in a project that investigates biocompatible polymers that can possibly be patterned with EUV light. The project includes spin coating polyurethanes onto silicon wafers. Presently I am testing the spin coating conditions to find the protocol to generate homogeneous films to be exposed to the EUV.

Thaddeus Johnson (Colorado State University)

My main project has been working in the electronics for a fast laser switch. At first Derek (my REU co-worker) and I researched light polarization, Pockels cells, EMI, RFI, and different types of filters. We then modified the power supply and control board to have improved EMI filtering. This was especially interesting because we had the opportunity to work through the entire process, designing the filters, simulating them, designing our pcb , selecting and ordering parts, and assembling the final circuit. I learned a lot about the differences between the ideals that we learn in school and what goes into making a board that actually does what you want it to. I have also learned a good deal of Solidworks and I have learned how to use the manual milling machine and the band saw.

Nina Popovic Basta (McGill University)

A pump probe uses the popular method of splitting and recombining light to experimentally discover properties of a molecule. For this project the time difference is an essential variable to control and know. My setup used a Michelson Interferometer set up to find a correlation between the time delay and a piezo -motor movement. The final product will be a labview program that can control the piezo motor movements to affect the time delay .

Dominique Everett (Morehouse College)

The objective of our research is to investigate new polymers for EUV laser nano-patterning. We cover substrates' surfaces with polyurethanes diluted in THF ( Tetrahydrofuran which is our solvent), such that the solution can be at a liquid state to spin coat homogenously. Thus far we have discovered that the polyurethane has a reaction to UV light. The goal is to find the conditions that will allow EUV nano-patterning in the surface of these biocompatible polymers.

Diana Peterson (Colorado State University)

This summer, I worked with several different aspects of a 47 nm imaging system. I developed an electronic amplifier to drive a piezo to demonstrate stop-action nano-scale imaging with this microscope. I also developed and tested a new electronics control circuit to remotely control the extreme ultraviolet laser that is used as the illumination light source for the microscope. I'm also working on zone plate software development to design lenses for the microscope. For side projects, I'm working with silicon nitride membranes.

Leigh Martin (University of Colorado, Boulder)

This summer I built a feedback system to stabilize our laser setup. In higher harmonic generation, we require our laser to point directly into an extremely narrow, gas-filled fiber. By using extremely accurate movable mirrors and high speed electronics, I was able to compensate for much of the spatial instability in the laser and keep it pointed directly into this fiber. Hopefully, this will increase the repeatability of the light we create from these fibers, which could lead to higher-quality data.