Polymers at Interfaces: US-Korea International Research and Education Partnership

Our NSF program of Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) is focused on the development and training of graduate, undergraduate students and faculty members in the field of polymer physics by promoting both domestic and international research collaborations with specific exchange opportunities for both US and Korean participants. This collaborative effort by a group of 5 US faculty members is motivated by the global partnership with Korean polymer physicists to promote novel opportunities in polymer science research and education. Our PIRE program involves a focused research plan at the forefront of polymer physics based on the synthesis, separation, characterization, and theory of synthetic polymers in bulk and at interfaces. The multifaceted research activities spanning the areas of polymer synthesis, characterization, property modifications and their modeling will be presented to advance our knowledge on polymer behaviors at interfaces.