Sandia National Labs Academic Alliance & UNM Collaboration Report 2020-2021

FUNDING GREAT RESEARCH TWO DIFFERENT WAYS

ACORN awards seed new collaborations for early career researchers

Accelerated Collaborative Research Nucleus (ACORN) is a new Sandia strategic initiative designed to fund LDRD project collaborations with NM universities. This program focuses on providing early career researchers with cross-institutional engagement. Each early career Sandia staff member (<5 years at Sandia) is connected with a new university faculty member (<5 years at the university) to initiative collaborative work. Typical projects run for 2-3 years with funding up to $100 thousand per year. One new project is typically started each year. LDRD and UNM’s Office of the Vice President of Research (OVPR) supplements working together One of the OVPR projects focuses on controlling nonlinear dynamical structures under extreme normal environments and required the OVPR-funded purchase of a large shaker and a data acquisition system required for operation. Graduate student Eric Robbins is working toward a Ph.D. as he makes advancements in his research project, partnering with structural dynamics expert Ben Pacini from Sandia. The OVPR-funded shaker and data acquisition system

are not only enabling this project but will advance UNM’s research in the area of structural dynamics and controls for years. The new equipment will also be made available to teams participating in the Nonlinear Dynamics (NOMAD) summer research institute, co-led by Sandia’s Rob Kuether and UNM’s Tariq Khraishi from the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

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Sandia Academic Alliance Program

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