Science minister attends launch of new transatlantic research link

Minister of State for Science and Innovation tries his hand at manipulating US microscope from London lab - News Release

Imperial College London News Release

For Immediate Use
Wednesday 10 October 2007

Scientists in London will be able to use and manipulate, in real-time, leading multi-million dollar scientific instruments and technology in the USA, following the official launch of the Global Lab at Imperial College London today. The launch was attended by Ian Pearson, Minister of State for Science and Innovation, Sir Keith O'Nions, Director General of Science and Innovation, Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), and Dr Thom Mason, Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA.

The Global Lab has been established as part of the AtlanTICC Alliance, a sustainable energy research consortium comprising Imperial College London, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta USA, and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, USA. The AtlanTICC Alliance was established four years ago as part of a GBP 1.5 million grant to support research collaborations between Imperial and leading US research organisations on energy sources and the treatment of cancer. This grant was made by the UK Government's Office of Science and Innovation, which is now part of DIUS.

The AtlanTICC Alliance has also recently established a unique UK-USA framework agreement between the three partner organisations to facilitate open and collaborative working with joint research and development teams.

The Global Lab links together laboratories in the UK and the US via a high bandwidth/low latency network, the Lambda Rail, running across the Atlantic seabed. Its low latency and high bandwidth means that the Lambda Rail can move vast amounts of data virtually instantaneously across thousands of miles. AtlanTICC scientists have already shown that they can simultaneously manipulate complex equipment in the US, and talk to each other on the Lambda Rail via video link-up, without the time-delay and low resolution usually associated with such long-range communications. All three institutions involved are now exploring how to use this data rich, high speed communications tool to share ideas and research through international seminars and lectures.

As an example of the Global Lab in action, the Minister controlled and manipulated, from London, one of the world's leading electron microscopes at Oak Ridge, the JEOL 2200FS Aberration Corrected Electron Microscope (ACEM). In this extremely powerful microscope, electrons are focussed into a probe that is less than 0.0.1nm in diameter, which is less than the length of a typical chemical bond. By scanning this probe across a sample, it is possible to analyse individual atoms.

There are only a small number of such machines worldwide that provide scientists with true atomic-scale resolution. Imperial researchers will now be able to access this technology to carry out important research into alternatives to fossil fuels – such as the next generation of low-cost solar power cells, advanced fuel cells and innovative biofuels – in collaboration with their colleagues in America.

The AtlanTICC Alliance event at Imperial's South Kensington campus in central London began with a video conference outlining the AtlanTICC Alliance's aims and research goals, including live input from all three institutions. The Minister then saw the Global Lab in action, and was able to use the equipment at Imperial to image the atomic-structure of an exciting new type of superlattice structure for use in fuel cell devices using the ACEM at Oak Ridge.

Imperial's Dr Tariq Ali, Director of the AtlanTICC Alliance, said: "The Global Lab link will be an invaluable tool for scientists from all three institutions involved in the Alliance. Remote use of state-of-the art apparatus such as the ACEM will mean that our scientists can share ideas, experiments and data towards developing new 'green' fuels and energy alternatives without the need for costly and environmentally-damaging long haul international flights."

Ian Pearson, Minister of State for Science and Innovation, said: "This project demonstrates the importance of international collaboration in modern scientific research. Major scientific projects will frequently require researchers from different nations to work together. The UK already has a very good record on collaboration with researchers in other countries and I am pleased that the DIUS has been able to support this project through our GBP 6 million UK-US Science Bridges initiative."

Thom Mason, Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory said: "We are pleased to join our partners, Imperial College London and Georgia Institute of Technology, in today's demonstration and in the long-term pursuit of answers to global energy problems. Technology allows us to share resources and communicate science with collaborators, whether they are a few miles down the road or across an ocean. We believe that this kind of joint research brings together the strengths of our institutions in ways that will benefit us all."

Charles Liotta, Regents Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, added: "The AtlanTICC Alliance is a unique partnership between a leading research university in the United States, the leading technical university in the United Kingdom, and the largest energy lab in the United States to collaborate on global energy issues and solve energy challenges."

For further information please contact:

Danielle Reeves, press officer, Imperial College London
Tel: +44 (0)20 7594 2198
Mob: +44 (0)7803 886248
Email: Danielle.reeves@imperial.ac.uk

Lisa Grovenstein, Georgia Institute of Technology
Tel: +1 404 894 8835
Email: lisa.grovenstein@icpa.gatech.edu

Larisa Brass, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Tel: +1 865 574 4163
Email: brasslm@ornl.gov

Notes to Editors:

1. Rated as the world's ninth best university in the 2006 Times Higher Education Supplement University Rankings, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 11,500 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality.

Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and management and delivers practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.

With 66 Fellows of the Royal Society among our current academic staff and distinguished past members of the College including 14 Nobel Laureates and two Fields Medallists, Imperial's contribution to society has been immense. Inventions and innovations include the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography and the foundations of fibre optics. This commitment to the application of our research for the benefit of all continues today with current focuses including interdisciplinary collaborations to tackle climate change and mathematical modelling to predict and control the spread of infectious diseases.

The College's 100 years of living science will be celebrated throughout 2007 with a range of events to mark the Centenary of the signing of Imperial's founding charter on 8 July 1907.

Website: www.imperial.ac.uk

2. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the largest science and energy laboratory in the U.S. Energy Department complex. Managed by a partnership of the University of Tennessee and Battelle, the lab has a staff of more than 4,000 and annually hosts approximately 3,000 guest researchers from around the world. With an annual budget of more than $1 billion, the laboratory is home to world-class research programs in the areas of energy, neutron science, high-performance computing, systems biology, materials science and national security.

3. The Georgia Institute of Technology is one of the nation's premiere research universities. Ranked eighth among U.S. News & World Report's top public universities, Georgia Tech’s 17,000 students are enrolled in its Colleges of Architecture, Computing, Engineering, Liberal Arts, Management and Sciences. Tech is among the nation's top producers of women and African-American engineers. The Institute offers research opportunities to both undergraduate and graduate students and is home to more than 100 interdisciplinary units plus the Georgia Tech Research Institute.