Events

2026

2026 IPRIME Annual Meeting was highly attended:

May 26 - 28, 2026:

IPRIME events deliver business-relevant technical knowledge from experts and provide peer-to-peer networking opportunities.

Workshops: Highly curated events focused on specific, industry-relevant topics (e.g., circularity,fluorinated material replacements, biomedical design). Experts (top faculty and industry leaders) share their latest work on highly relevant subjects for industry R&D.

Annual Meeting: Features a workshop and a strategic review of the past year's research portfolio across all six IPRIME Research Programs. Attendance provides your company’s scientists the relevant technical insights through direct engagement with researchers.

Photos from 2026 IPRIME Annual Meeting: (top) Research Program Review; (bottom) Poster Session

Learn more about the recent 2026 Annual Meeting at the IPRIME website.

Short Course: Coating Process Fundamentals.

May 19 - 21, 2026: This course provides coating engineers, scientists, and researchers with an understanding of the principles of liquid-applied coating processes and solidification phenomena that are central to the development of high-performance, precision coatings used in a variety of industries.

Course topics include slot coating, curtain and slide coating, and multilayer coating; solidification phenomena, such as drying and stress development; and fundamental topics important to liquid applied-coating processes, such as wetting and rheology. The course draws on decades of research in the Coating Process Fundamentals Program.

Learn more about the Short Course, what is included, the price, and how to register, at the IPRIME website.

Professor Nini Pryds Seminar:
Exploring the Interface Symmetry in Complex Oxides

Friday, April 24, 2026; 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. (Central Time); Amundson Hall 287
All faculty, students and postdocs are welcome to attend.

Abstract: Complex oxides exhibit a diverse array of intriguing properties, including ferroelectricity, piezoelectricity, and pyroelectricity, which continue to draw significant interest. To unlock and expand their range of functionalities, various strategies have been utilized to alter lattice symmetry. In this presentation, I will demonstrate how deliberately manipulating symmetry can unlock extraordinary possibilities. These include the emergence of conductivity in real-time during material growth, the stabilization of phases that are typically unstable except at highly coherent interfaces, and the improvement of electromechanical performance via interface engineering. Additionally, I will explore innovative approaches to produce ultrathin, freestanding oxide films approaching the two-dimensional limit. We have recently demonstrated, for the first time, that twisted freestanding oxide membranes host engineered, periodic dislocation networks at their interfaces. The twist angle enables the precise tuning of the density and topology of the dislocation network. This array of advancements offers unique opportunities to harness the rich, novel functionalities of complex oxides and their interfaces.

Bio: Professor Pryds leads the "Functional Oxides" research section at the Department of Energy Conversion and Storage, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), with a group of over 35 researchers focused on functional oxide thin films. He has made significant contributions to Nanoionics and Iontronics, focusing on design and control of interface-related phenomena in ionic and electronic conductors. Over the past 20 years, he has been a key player in developing functional materials for energy applications. His main interest is in creating materials and devices with new properties, exploring how broken symmetries at interfaces influence magnetic, electronic, and ionic properties through conventional epitaxial stacking and the formation of freestanding thin films.

Professor Shubhra S. Pasayat Seminar:
Doping of ultrawidebandgap III-N materials with MOCVD

Friday, April 17, 2026; 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. (Central Time); Amundson Hall 151D
All faculty, students and postdocs are welcome to attend.

Abstract: AlN, an ultra-wide bandgap semiconductor, possesses significant potential for power electronic and deep UV emitter applications, owing to its ultra-wide bandgap (6.1 eV) and high thermal conductivity (319 W /mK). However, AlN-based devices face challenges regarding doping control. In particular, Si-doped n-AlN deposited by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) suffer from severe carrier compensation arising from the formation of compensating defects, such as aluminum vacancy, aluminum vacancy-Si complex, DX centers, and unintentional carbon incorporation on nitrogen site. Dr. Pasayat will present how her group's recent efforts have resulted in breakthrough results in realization of low sheet resistance n-AlN layers deposited on both bulk AlN and AlN on sapphire substrates. The outcomes of the studies performed by her group highlight the development of new n-AlN material process deposition regime using traditional MOCVD chambers, enabling improved electrical performance without the application of external stimuli such as UV illumination during the deposition process.

Bio: Professor Pasayat has extensive experience in III-N MOCVD with numerous important research outcomes in the field of III-Nitrides including first demonstration of elastic strain manipulation in III-Nitrides as well as light electron and light hole demonstration, record low sheet resistance in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs, record n-AlN conductivity with MOCVD and one of the best reported AlGaN channel HEMT results. She has received multiple recognitions for her accomplishments including the Harold M. Manasevit Young Investigator Award, Early Career Innovator Award and the NSF CAREER award.

Julie Showers seminar:
“Say More: Practical Application of Conflict Resolution Techniques”

Thursday, April 2, 2026; 1:25 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. (Central Time); Amundson Hall B75
All MRSEC faculty, students and postdocs are encouraged to attend.

MRSEC is partnering with CEMS to host a Climate seminar on conflict resolution. This is a follow up to the seminar presented by Julie Showers last fall. All MRSEC personnel are encouraged to attend whether or not you were able to make the workshop last fall.

This seminar is generously sponsored by UMN MRSEC and PPG.

Abstract: Last September, we met and examined Conflict Competency: a skill that helps us to stop avoiding conflict and instead address it directly in constructive ways. Julie Showers, the former Director of the Office for Conflict Resolution here at the University, offered practical tools for dealing with tensions that inevitably arise in our everyday lives. Based on the positive feedback we received, we have invited Julie to join us again on April 2 to dig a little deeper. This time, Julie is inviting you to help define the session by sharing your own experiences with conflict in your work/during your academic program. Your input and questions will help form the content and scenarios we use in the April meeting. So, think about the things that bug you…the things that wake you up at night…the things you really wish others (other faculty, staff, or students) knew…what you wish you could say but don't feel able...the things you most wish they would do (or stop doing)…and send those thoughts to Julie via the Qualtrics survey link below (responses requested by 3/27). Then show up on April 2 and practice addressing these real life issues in practical ways!

Bio: Julie Showers retired in 2021 after serving as the University of Minnesota's Associate Vice President in the Office for Equity and Diversity. Prior to that, she served as the Director of the Office of Conflict Resolution. Before joining the University, Julie worked for over 25 years in private practice and as a senior officer at Northwest and Delta Air Lines. Now a consultant, she specializes in helping people navigate conflict in healthy and effective ways and serves as an adjunct instructor at the University of Minnesota Law School.

[CANCELLED] 2026 IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop "Plastic Film Circularity: Ambition, Reality, and Opportunity".

January 29, 2026: Brought to you by M-SPIRE, IPRIME, and CSP, our intent is to convene technical leaders from across the value chain – from material suppliers and converters to CPG brands and academic researchers. This workshop aims to move beyond why we must act and focuses on what challenges persist and how we can collectively succeed. The goal is to identify and map the hurdles you face today within plastic films and collaboratively outline a roadmap for the R&D and innovation needed to overcome them.

IPRIME workshops bring together experts from both industry and academia on focused topics of mutual interest. This workshop is free and open to IPRIME member companies, invited guests, and University of Minnesota faculty, students, and staff.

IPRIME is the University’s industrial-academic partnership, fostering scientific exchange between industry professionals and U of M students and researchers across a wide range of science and engineering disciplines. MRSEC and IPRIME are closely connected, with the program’s director, Chris Ellison, also serving as a faculty member in IRG-2.

If you are not an IPRIME member, nor an M-SPIRE or CSP Partner, please contact iprime@umn.edu or cellison@umn.edu to inquire about attendance as an invited guest.

Learn more at the IPRIME website.

2026 Physics Force Winter Public Shows: January 17, 2026; 11:00 am & 2:00 pm

details and tickets

Characterization Facility Seminar: "The D8 Discover Microdiffractometer: A tool to study the structure and morphology of thin-film, bulk, and powder crystals": Thursday, January 15, 2026; 11:00 am in Rapson Hall 45

full details and the link to register
Intended audience is CharFac Users and PIs.

2026 Energy and U Public Show: January 10, 2026; 2:00 pm

details and tickets

2025

Professor Stephanie Law Seminar:
Synthesis of 2D and Quantum Materials using AI/ML

Friday, October 10, 2025; 11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. (Central Time); Amundson Hall 151D
All MRSEC faculty, students and postdocs are welcome to attend.

Abstract: Two-dimensional (2D) and other quantum materials are of interest for next-generation devices such as lightweight transistors and quantum light emitters, as well as for demonstrating novel physics. However, the synthesis of 2D materials and quantum dots is significantly more complicated than traditional 3D semiconductor thin film growth. In this talk, I will discuss our recent efforts to synthesize high-quality 2D films and 0D quantum dots using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). I will discuss the general recipe that we have found for growing wafer-scale 2D materials with a low density of these defects and a highly controllable thickness. This recipe works to grow films down to a few monolayers, allowing the unusual quantum mechanical effects to be observed. I will show recent work in which we use selective area epitaxy to grow 2D materials as site-controlled and size-controlled quantum dots. I will then discuss our recent efforts to use AI/ML techniques to improve film synthesis using process modeling and Bayesian optimization.

Bio: Prof. Law is an Associate Professor and Wilson Faculty Fellow in the department of Materials Science and Engineering at Penn State University. She holds affiliate appointments in the Penn State Department of Physics and the Institute for Energy and the Environment. She is the Director of Education and Training programs for the Penn State Two-Dimensional Crystal Consortium and is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology. She received her B.S. in Physics from Iowa State University and her Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. She then held a postdoctoral position in the Electrical Engineering department at Illinois before moving to the University of Delaware as an Assistant Professor. Prof. Law has won the North American Molecular Beam Epitaxy Young Investigator award, the Department of Energy Early Career award, the AVS Peter Mark Memorial Award, the International Conference on Molecular Beam Epitaxy Young Investigator Award, and the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). She is a fellow of the American Vacuum Society.

Julie Showers Seminar:
Effective Strategies for Engaging Everyday Conflict

Thursday, September 25, 2025; 1:25 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. (Central Time); Amundson Hall B75
All MRSEC faculty, students and postdocs are welcome to attend.

Abstract: In many surveys, interpersonal conflict is the primary challenge that university faculty, staff and students find most stressful. This isn't surprising. We move through high-intensity workplaces and social spaces feeling increased pressure from stakeholders (faculty members, students, staff, leaders) to have all the answers, all the time - and to express those answers in exactly the right way. Some of us face particular conflicts that seem impossible to resolve and particular colleagues who seem determined to be difficult. And yet, the ability to experience tension and remain in relationship with those who cause it is a key strength regardless of field, discipline or context. This event explores practical tools to improve our resiliency and efficacy when conflict inevitably arises.

Bio: Julie Showers retired in 2021 after serving as the University of Minnesota's Associate Vice President in the Office for Equity and Diversity. Prior to that, she served as the Director of the Office of Conflict Resolution. Before joining the University, Julie worked for over 25 years in private practice and as a senior officer at Northwest and Delta Air Lines. Now a consultant, she specializes in helping people navigate conflict in healthy and effective ways and serves as an adjunct instructor at the University of Minnesota Law School.

events

2026

2026 IPRIME Annual Meeting was highly attended:

Short Course: Coating Process Fundamentals.

Professor Nini Pryds Seminar: Exploring the Interface Symmetry in Complex Oxides

Professor Shubhra S. Pasayat Seminar: Doping of ultrawidebandgap III-N materials with MOCVD

Julie Showers seminar: “Say More: Practical Application of Conflict Resolution Techniques”

[CANCELLED] 2026 IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop "Plastic Film Circularity: Ambition, Reality, and Opportunity".

2026 Physics Force Winter Public Shows: January 17, 2026; 11:00 am & 2:00 pm

Characterization Facility Seminar: "The D8 Discover Microdiffractometer: A tool to study the structure and morphology of thin-film, bulk, and powder crystals": Thursday, January 15, 2026; 11:00 am in Rapson Hall 45

2026 Energy and U Public Show: January 10, 2026; 2:00 pm

2025

Professor Stephanie Law Seminar: Synthesis of 2D and Quantum Materials using AI/ML

Julie Showers Seminar: Effective Strategies for Engaging Everyday Conflict

2025 IPRIME Annual Meeting: May 27

IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop - Materials Design Challenges for Biomedical Applications: Tuesday, January 14

Physics Force Winter Show: January 13 - 18

2024

MRSEC-Medtronic Workshop on Critical Thinking and Decision Making Participation: November 20

2024 IPRIME Annual Meeting: May 28

IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop - Advanced Analytical Methodologies for Characterization of Materials: Tuesday, January 9

All-MRSEC and EAB Meeting: Friday, February 9

2023

2023 IPRIME Annual Meeting: May 30

All-MRSEC and EAB Meeting: Thursday, February 23 (via Zoom)

IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop: January 11

2022

2022 IPRIME Annual Meeting: June 1

2022 Annual All-MRSEC Meeting: February 9

MRSEC Science Slam: January 28

IPRIME 2022 Mid Year Workshop: January 11

2021

2021 IPRIME Virtual Annual Meeting: August 3-5

Start of Summer Undergraduate Research Programs: May 31

All-MRSEC Meeting: January 15

IPRIME Mid-Year Workshop and Poster Session: January 12

2020

POLY/PMSE Seminar: "Bioinspired mineralization of natural polymers for biomedical applications" and "Environmental degradation of polymers: an example of polyacrylamide and an outlook for plastics" December 10

IPRIME Virtual Annual Meeting: August 4 - 6

Green and Sustainable Chemistry Workshop: July 13 - 15

PREM virtual REU: June - August

IPRIME Annual Meeting: May 26 - 28

Energy and U: This event has been canceled

Physics Force Spring Show: This event has been canceled.

All-MRSEC Meeting: January 22

IPRIME Midyear Workshop: January 14

Physics Force Winter Show: January 13 - 18

Energy and U: January 9 & 10, 13-17

2019

Aris Lecture: November 19

Aris Lecture: November 5

MRSEC Lunch, TED Talk & Diversity Discussion: November 1

Aris Lecture: October 29

Aris Lecture: October 15

Aris Lecture: October 8

Aris Lecture: October 1

CEMS Department Seminar: September 24

Aris Lecture: September 19

CEMS Department Seminar: September 17

Aris Lecture: September 12

Summer Undergraduate Research Expo: August 7

DiscoverSTEM: August 5 - 9

DiscoverSTEM: July 29 - August 2

Start of Research Experiences for Teachers Program: July 1 - August 8

Green & Sustainable Chemistry High School Teachers Workshop: June 18 - 20

DiscoverSTEM: June 17 - 21

Start of Summer Undergraduate Research Programs: June 3

IPrime Annual Meeting: May 28 - May 30

Coating Process Fundamentals Short Course: May 21 – 23

Physics Force 2019 Spring Shows May 8-9

CEMS Chats (Learning through a lens of research): February 6

All-MRSEC Meeting: January 31

IPrime Mid-Year Workshops and Charfac Demos: January 15-17

Physics Force 2019 Winter and Spring Shows January 14-19 and May 8-9

2018

MRSEC IRG-3 Meeting: December 10

MRSEC IRG-3 Meeting: October 26

CEMS Chats (Learning through a lens of research): October 17

American Indian Visit Day: October 8

CEMS Chats (Learning through a lens of research): September 26

Professor Nini Pryds Seminar:
Exploring the Interface Symmetry in Complex Oxides

Professor Shubhra S. Pasayat Seminar:
Doping of ultrawidebandgap III-N materials with MOCVD

Julie Showers seminar:
“Say More: Practical Application of Conflict Resolution Techniques”

Professor Stephanie Law Seminar:
Synthesis of 2D and Quantum Materials using AI/ML

Julie Showers Seminar:
Effective Strategies for Engaging Everyday Conflict