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The U.S. National Science Foundation funds fundamental research to enhance U.S. competitiveness, economy, and people's lives. The Materials Innovation Platforms (MIPs) program was initiated in 2015 in response to national needs in mid-scale research infrastructure for accelerating materials research. "Materials Innovations Platforms represent a new modality for supporting scientific research," says Linda Sapochak, director of the Division of Materials Research at NSF. "The MIP program provides the required infrastructure made available to a diverse set of stakeholders to support transdisciplinary research and training, to provide broad access to cutting-edge tools, and to facilitate data and knowledge sharing in key enabling areas of national priority."

UCLA's BioPACIFIC Materials Innovation Platform has launched the Living Biofoundry, a shared resource for researchers developing microbes for sustainable materials. This NSF-funded facility features advanced automation systems for high-throughput synthetic biology, aiding the production of bioderived polymers and chemicals. Access is open to U.S. scientists via a peer-reviewed proposal process.

Johns Hopkins' groundbreaking bulk crystal growth facility, part of one of four materials innovation platforms supported by the National Science Foundation, has received a $5 million renewal grant that will allow scientists to continue designing and creating new materials there for the next generation of electronic devices.

Christopher Bates, an assistant professor at UC Santa Barbara, received the 2021 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, providing him with $100,000 for research on bottlebrush copolymers. His work will leverage UCSB’s advanced facilities to optimize molecular designs for enhanced performance in various applications.

Professor Ellen Sletten has won the 2020-2021 McCoy Award for her significant contributions to chemistry and biochemistry. She developed bright fluorophores for shortwave infrared emission, enabling non-invasive imaging through skin and tissue, with potential applications in safe, low-cost optical diagnostics in clinical settings.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) announced a renewal of funding for the Materials Innovation Platform (MIP) national user facility at Penn State’s Materials Research Institute (MRI), the Two-Dimensional Crystal Consortium (2DCC). The 2DCC, which has many users from the Eberly College of Science, is one of four MIPs in the United States and was awarded $20.1 million over five years, an increase of 13% above the initial award in 2016.

Cornell’s Platform for the Accelerated Realization, Analysis, and Discovery of Interface Materials (PARADIM) has received a second award of $22.5 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund another five years, enabling scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs nationwide to design and create new inorganic materials for use in electronics.

UC Santa Barbara's Glenn Fredrickson was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2021. He holds a joint appointment in Materials and Chemical Engineering, directs MC-CAM, and has received numerous awards. Fredrickson is also involved in multiscale modeling and computation at the BioPACIFIC MIP.