Top Nanotechnology Researchers Move to Canada

Canadian Coming Home to Head New Research Group

(June 26, 2003 - Edmonton, AB) – Two of the leading researchers in the emerging field of nanotechnology have moved to Edmonton to head new research groups at the National Research Council's National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT) and to teach chemistry at the University of Alberta.

Recognized internationally for their innovative work, Jillian Buriak and Hicham Fenniri were both nanotechnology group leaders at Purdue University in Indiana before being recruited to Edmonton through a joint effort of the University of Alberta and the National Research Council. "By working with our partner, the University of Alberta, we were able to put together a combination of research funding and teaching opportunities that allowed us to bring these two very important scientists to Canada," said Dr. Arthur Carty, National Research Council President. "I am confident that they will provide the scientific leadership that will establish NINT as a global competitor and will shape the future of Canada's nanotechnology effort."

"We continue to attract top-notch researchers to the province, thanks to globally competitive facilities like NINT," said Victor Doerksen, Alberta's Minister of Innovation and Science. "I welcome the researchers who have chosen Alberta as their home and workplace, and look forward to the outcomes resulting from their infusion of energy and ideas at NINT."

Buriak, a Canadian originally from Toronto, is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Alberta and will be nominated for a Canada Research Chair in the development of new materials. She will also lead the Materials and Interfacial Chemistry Group at NINT. She is recognized for her pioneering methods for the modification of semiconductor surfaces that will underpin a new generation of opto-electronic and molecular devices.

Fenniri will lead the Supramolecular Nanoscale Assembly Group at NINT and also be a Professor in the Chemistry Department. His world-leading work represents the convergence of two of the most modern aspects of organic chemistry: combinatorial chemistry and supramolecular chemistry in which small molecules are designed to assemble into nanoscale structures for a wide range of applications from drug discovery to molecular electronics.

"The recruitment of these two extraordinary scientists is a perfect example of what can be achieved through government/university partnerships. Along with the federal government's National Research Council and Alberta Science and Innovation, we are now well on the way to moving scientific boundaries further and faster than any of us could individually. Faculty, students and the community at large clearly benefit from such initiatives," said University of Alberta President Dr. Roderick Fraser.

The National Institute for Nanotechnology is an integrated, multidisciplinary research institution with a mandate to carry out advanced research and promote innovation in support of a new generation of nanotechnology-based firms.

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Backgrounder

Jillian Buriak

Originally from Toronto, Buriak earned her PhD in Chemistry from the Université Louis Pasteur in France after an undergraduate degree at Harvard. She then received a Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Fellowship to do post-graduate work at The Scripps Research Institute in California before going to Purdue University in 1997. Her area of specialty is silicon surface chemistry. She recently won the 2003 American Chemical Society Award for Pure Chemistry.

Hicham Fenniri

Hicham Fenniri holds multiple degrees in biochemistry and chemistry from Université Louis Pasteur. He was a Post-doctoral Research Associate at The Scripps Research Institute. In 1997, he joined Purdue University, where he founded the Purdue Laboratory for Chemical Nanotechnology. He is the recipient of several awards including the US National Science Foundation Career Award, the Cottrell Teacher Scholar Award and the Trask Technology Innovation award. His research is focused on nanoscale self-assembly, functional materials and combinatorial chemistry.

Canada Research Chairs (CRC)

The CRC is a $900 million federal program aimed at supporting outstanding researchers to help them advance their careers among world-class colleagues and gain access to top graduate students and state-of-the-art research facilities. It also gives universities an opportunity to retain their top researchers and recruit excellent researchers from around the world. The program supports the establishment of 2,000 research chairs at Canadian universities by 2005. More information is available at www.chairs.gc.ca

National Institute for Nanotechnology (NINT)

The National Institute for Nanotechnology is an integrated, multidisciplinary research institution involving researchers in physics, chemistry, engineering, biology, informatics, pharmacy and medicine. Funded by the Government of Canada and the Government of Alberta and operated as a partnership of the National Research Council of Canada and the University of Alberta, it will carry out advanced research and foster innovation in support of a new generation of nanotechnology-based firms. Located on the University of Alberta campus in Edmonton, the Institute's upcoming 15,000 square-metre facility is designed to accommodate 120 permanent staff; up to 45 guest workers from industry and universities; and training opportunities for some 275 graduate and post-doctoral researchers.

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is defined as the application of science to developing new materials and processes by manipulating molecular and atomic particles. A nanometre is a billionth of a metre, that is, about 1/80,000 of the diameter of a human hair, or 10 times the diameter of a hydrogen atom.