Purdue leads center to simulate behavior of micro-electromechanic...( WEST LAFAYETTE Ind. - The National N...)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The National Nuclear Security Administration has awarded a $17 million cooperative agreement for a research center at Purdue University's Discovery Park to develop advanced simulations for commercial and defense applications, Purdue officials announced Friday (March 7).

The center will focus on the behavior and reliability of miniature switches and is one of five new Centers of Excellence chosen by the NNSA.

About 35 researchers at Purdue, including faculty members, software professionals and students, will be involved in the new Center for Prediction of Reliability, Integrity and Survivability of Microsystems, or PRISM. The University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and the University of New Mexico will collaborate in the center.

"The center takes advantage of Purdue's interdisciplinary strengths and considerable expertise in computational modeling and nanotechnology," Purdue President France A. Crdova said.

The center will advance the emerging field of "predictive science," or applying computational simulations to predict the behavior of complex systems, said Jayathi Y. Murthy, director of the new center and a professor in Purdue's School of Mechanical Engineering.

The new centers will develop advanced science and engineering models and software for simulations needed to predict the reliability and durability of "micro-electromechanical systems," or MEMS. Researchers also will develop methods associated with the emerging disciplines of verification and validation and uncertainty quantification.

"The goal of these emerging disciplines is to enable scientists to make precise statements about the degree of confidence they have in their simulation-based predictions," Murthy said.

PRISM will be based at the Birck Nanotechnology Center and also is affiliated with the Energy Center, both in Purdue's Discovery Park.

The center is funded with $17 million over five years f
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