May 10, 2023

The FEI Philips XL 40 Environmental Scanning Microscope (ESEM) is a large chamber scanning electron microscope. It is operated by a Michigan Tech shared facility, the Applied Chemical and Morphological Analysis Laboratory (ACMAL). ACMAL was awarded a Shared Facility Grant from the Associate Vice President of Research Development to upgrade the ESEM electronics and software system. The upgrade is expected to offset future repair costs and minimize instrument downtime.

If you have not considered the ESEM for your research, this instrument is capable of operating in high vacuum mode for conventional scanning electron microscopy.

The ESEM supports large area montage imaging and elemental mapping (up to a few square centimeters), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS)-based phase analysis, chemical contrast imaging and EDS-based particle analysis, as well as crystallographic phase mapping, texture analysis and grain size orientation distribution by electron backscatter diffraction.

Contact ACMAL Director Elizabeth Miller with questions. You may request instrument training, sample preparation or sample analysis services. Remote training and collaboration are available. Request a tour for yourself and your team. We can help you select an instrument and find expertise in developing process plans for your research.

Current users are reminded to cite ACMAL in all publications arising from research using these instruments. Help us to build a community of electron microscopists.

The Graduate School office will be closed Friday (May 12) starting at 3 p.m. so staff can attend the retirement party for Nancy Byers Sprague in the Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC).

We will resume normal operations on Monday (May 15). We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Registration is open for the Graduate Student Government (GSG) Softball League. Sign up now to register a team or to register as an individual. Individuals without a team will be assigned a team for the season. All Michigan Tech and community members are welcome — the only stipulation is that 50% of the team be Tech students, faculty or staff.

Registration closes at 11:59 p.m. on May 23. The league will run Thursday nights starting June 1 and ending with a Saturday picnic and playoff tournament on July 29.

All are welcome to play, as we will have a preseason softball clinic and captains meeting to go over the rules and techniques of softball.

We’re one week away from the start of registration for Michigan Tech Recreation's summer aquatics programs — registration opens next Wednesday (May 17) at 8 a.m. Will we see you at one of our aquatics programs this summer?

• Adult Huskies Swim Training (ages 18 years or older)
• Huskies Swim Training (ages 6-17 years)
• Huskies Group Swim Lessons Parent & Child Aquatics (ages 6 months to 3 years)
• Huskies Group Swim Lessons Preschool Aquatics (ages 4-5 years)
• Huskies Group Swim Lessons Learn to Swim Levels 1-5 (ages 6-17 years)

Questions? Contact Aquatics Manager Annie Bengry at ambengry@mtu.edu or 906-487-2995.

Michigan Tech volleyball has added Alayna Corwin to its roster for the upcoming 2023 season.

Corwin is transferring to Tech from NCAA Division I Marshall University, where she was a member of the volleyball team for the past two seasons. Corwin will have three years of eligibility remaining as a defensive specialist/setter and will major in mechanical engineering.

"We're certainly very excited about Alayna joining the Huskies and are grateful for her decision to continue her career and education here at Tech," coach Matt Jennings said. "Alayna brings a lot to our team: a broad skill set and experience playing multiple positions, high character, a wonderful attitude and an exceptional academic background. I have no doubt Alayna will fit in well with us and thrive here at Tech."

Read more at the Michigan Tech Athletics website.

Hydro Review and the Wisconsin Technology Council mentioned Michigan Tech in stories about Dairyland Power Cooperative’s planned exploration of Upper Midwest mine sites for development of a pumped underground storage hydropower facility. MTU and Mine Storage International AB of Sweden are collaborating on the project, which was the subject of a Michigan Tech News press release.

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EIN Presswire mentioned Michigan Tech in a story on the City of Houghton’s dispute with Walmart of Houghton over the store’s property tax valuation and its impacts. The story was picked up by more than 45 regional news outlets, including CW39 Houston, FOX31 Denver KDVR-TV and KGET TV 17 of Bakersfield, California.

Michigan Tech Entrepreneurs Pitching at Rice Business Plan Competition

Rourke Sylvain and Ali Dabas will pitch imi at the prestigious Rice Business Plan Competition tomorrow and Saturday (May 11 and 13).

Sylvain is the founder and CEO of imi (integrated molecular innovations), and Dabas is imi's co-founder and CTO. They are pitching a biowearable device that revolutionizes health care by eliminating the need for centralized clinical testing. Their device will provide patients with the ability to monitor their hormone levels continuously.

Sylvain is currently completing an M.S. in biomedical engineering and an M.S. in data science and is transitioning into the Ph.D. program for biomedical engineering at Michigan Tech. Dabas completed a B.S. in biomedical engineering ('23) and has an associate’s degree in math and science.

At the Rice Business Plan Competition, they will present their elevator pitch tomorrow at 6 p.m. and participate in the live finals 15-minute pitch on Saturday at noon. Both presentations can be watched on YouTube or at the Rice Business Plan Competition website.

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Memorial Day Payroll Schedule

Due to the Memorial Day Holiday on May 29, deadlines for Payroll and Human Resources forms will be as follows for the period from Sunday (May 14) through May 27 (Bi-weekly 11). Department timekeepers are responsible for sharing this information with all employees in your department.

The deadlines below indicate when items are due to Payroll and/or Human Resources, not to individual departments. Departments are responsible for setting internal deadlines with employees to meet these deadlines.

• Status Forms Due to Human Resources: Thursday, May 18, at noon
• EPAF Submissions: Thursday, May 18, at noon
• Deduction Forms: Tuesday, May 23, at noon
• Electronic Time Submission: Friday, May 26, at noon
• Web Time Entry Approval: Friday, May 26, at 2 p.m.

Please be sure that all web time approvers have a designated proxy set up.

For instructions on how to set up a proxy, please visit the Quick Reference Guide for Approvers PDF.

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APS Labs Offering Diesel Engine Short Courses

Despite the industry turn to and customer demand for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), diesel-powered vehicles are still very much on the road.

The expert instructors at Michigan Tech's APS Labs (Jeff Naber, Jeremy Worm, Grant Ovist and Vinicius Bonfochi Vinhaes) know that diesel engines are and will still be with us in the future. So they are teaming up to offer two short professional development courses on diesel engines. These 20-hour (2.5-day) courses are offered in two modalities: in person and live online.

• MEEM5202 Fundamentals of Diesel Engines will run May 31 to June 2. Its content is designed for those needing foundational knowledge in diesel engines.

• MEEM5204 Diesel Engine Management Systems, Emissions, and Aftertreatment will run June 28-30. Its content is designed for those who want a deeper knowledge in diesel engine management systems, emissions and aftertreatment.

Both courses are ideal for those interested in pursuing careers in the automotive industry, commercial vehicles, power generation or related fields.

Need more information? Check out the APS Labs Short Courses page or email Vinicius Bonfochi Vinhaes at vbvinhae@mtu.edu.

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Michigan Tech Parent Panel

Wednesday, May 10, 8:00 p.m.–9:30 p.m.

Join a panel of current Husky parents to answer any questions you may have. They'll share their student experiences at Tech and how to navigate the whole process as a...

Michigan Tech Student Hangout

Wednesday, May 10, 8:00 p.m.–9:30 p.m.

Join a panel of current Michigan Tech students to ask questions and learn stories and tips about life as a Husky. Register online:...

Summer WonderHack Competition for K-12 Students

May 10, all day

Michigan Tech is pleased to announce the launch of Summer WonderHack 2023, a new capture-the-flag (CTF) cybersecurity competition designed for K-12 participants. The event is...