About
The Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials (PRISM) is a multidisciplinary research center at Princeton University in the general field of materials science through photonics with a special emphasis on the hard material - soft material interface. Its mission includes graduate and undergraduate education and research, which will have a long-term impact on society. Key elements of PRISM are the integration of the sciences and engineering, with work spanning from fundamental theory through applications, and the integration of our work with efforts outside Princeton , especially with industry.
PRISM was formed in November 2003, based on foundations of two smaller interdisciplinary centers at Princeton , the former Princeton Materials Institute and the former Center for Photonics and Optoelectronic Materials.
Research at PRISM is supported by a wide range of government agencies (State and Federal), industries, and foundations. Programs of special note at PRISM include the Princeton Center for Complex Materials (PCCM), funded by the National Science Foundation Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (NSF-MRSEC) program, and several multi-disciplinary Centers in emerging research fields, funded by the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology (NJCST).
PRISM was founded not only to deepen our strengths in traditional areas of materials science and photonics, but especially to pursue emerging opportunities at the intersection between traditional fields This intersection includes organic electronics, quantum information, materials and processes, and biomedical imaging, to name a few. These fields are based on our traditional strengths, and many involve interaction between the traditional "hard materials" communities, such as those from the fields of semiconductors and photonics, and the "soft materials" communities, such as those of organic materials, soft condensed material, biological materials, and genomics. This theme of the hard/soft interface runs throughout the most exciting programs which exist within PRISM, and it is a field which we expect to continue to grow in importance.
Among other things, PRISM is a meeting place to bring people together so that we can learn from one another and benefit from the talents of others. This mix includes scientists and engineers, students and experienced professionals from Princeton and from industry and government, and those who can relate our work to the larger society as a whole. At PRISM, we offer a formal education program for Princeton undergraduates in which they are integrated into the research program and a multidisciplinary program for graduate students in cooperation with academic departments. The compact size of Princeton University insures a close interaction between scientists and engineers across academic boundaries. Those outside of Princeton , especially industry, bring important long-term challenges to us and provide a path by which our discoveries and advances can be translated into practice to have a large impact on society. Such interaction is promoted by the advanced central facilities of PRISM, which are open to our industrial collaborators, our industrial affiliates programs, joint research programs, and our proximity to the local Route 1 corridor.
Please come visit PRISM and join us in realizing this exciting mission.