PINACLE (The Penn International Nanofabrication and Characterization Learning Experience) is a workforce development program that leverages the Singh Center’s state-of-the-art resources to spark international collaboration between Penn Engineering Faculty and investigators worldwide. The program is open to any external institution or academic department that can support the costs of living and travel (both round-trip and domestic) for their visiting scholars, who will conduct work at a world-class Ivy League institution in the heart of historic Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. PINACLE Scholars will work not only under the auspices of Penn Engineering Faculty, but also with their research team, the Singh Center for Nanotechnology expert staff, and the PINACLE Program Coordinators.
How to enable collaboration?
To ignite collaboration with Penn Engineering Faculty and your external institution, there are three primary requirements:
- Funding: The external institution will cover the cost of living and travel, both round-trip and domestic. Domestic travel includes airfare to scientific conferences, conference registration, and conference lodging for the PINACLE Scholar. Therefore, these funds should be secured by the participating external institution or external faculty.
- Agreement: We will need a fully executed cooperative agreement between Penn and the external institution. The agreement will cover program expectations and outcomes.
- Participant Candidates: You will also need willing participants (external graduate students or post-docs who will serve as PINACLE Scholars) of the external faculty whose research aims and existing skills align with Penn Engineering Faculty and who can reside in the U.S. for a minimum stay of six (6) months.
Contact Singh Center Associate Director, Dr. Gerald Lopez, to inquire more about the program at lopezg@seas.upenn.edu.
Who can participate in PINACLE?
Once a collaborative agreement is established and funding is secured by the external institution to cover the PINACLE Scholars’ travel and cost of living, external graduate students (Master’s and Ph.D.) and post-doctoral researchers, who are affiliated with the external academic institution, are eligible to participate as PINACLE Scholars.
Visiting Scholar Requirements
- Position: Must be a graduate student (Master’s or Ph.D.) or post-doctoral researcher who is actively conducting research at a qualified academic institution.
- Residence: There is a minimum six-month residence requirement for each PINACLE scholar to allow time for coordinated research and expected outcomes.
- Interest: Potential candidates are interested in learning new or applying known techniques in nanofabrication or nanoscale characterization to advance their research breadth, depth, and knowledge.
Program Outcomes
- Receive training on the Singh Center tools and instrumentation by its scientific expert staff
- Document processes and analytical methods for use at the Singh Center
- Co-author a journal or conference paper
- Present at or attend an international conference
- Present a poster at the Singh Center Annual User Meeting
- Provide a talk at the Singh Seminar Monthly Series
- Independently develop processes or analyses
- Attend 2 seminar talks
Contact Singh Center Associate Director, Dr. Gerald Lopez, at lopezg@seas.upenn.edu for more.
