Florida State lures Applied Superconductivity Center from Wisconsin

Ching-Jen “Marty” Chen, dean of the College of Engineering, and Chiang Shih, chairman of the college’s department of mechanical engineering, also were heavily involved in negotiations to bring ASC to FSU.

“The College of Engineering joins the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in welcoming the move of the Applied Superconductivity Center to Tallahassee,” Chen said.

“This is an excellent example of multidisciplinary collaboration between the sciences and engineering. The affiliation of ASC with the College of Engineering amplifies many ongoing efforts in material engineering research in the college and the magnet lab.”

Four top ASC researchers, including Director David C. Larbalestier, will begin relocating by January 2006. They will be followed over the next six months by eight post-doctoral researchers, several highly skilled machinists and a few graduate students. In all, ASC may bring as many as 30 researchers to Tallahassee, along with some $2 million in research grants and another $2.5 million worth of precision laboratory equipment.

Larbalestier is viewed by many of his peers as the leading researcher in the United States, and possibly the world, in the basic research of practical superconducting materials for magnets and power applications. Over a 35-year career, he has profoundly influenced the development of high-field magnets for high-energy physics and other applications, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), that have evolved from them. Among the highlights of his career is his election in 2003 to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering.

“The Economic Development Council of Tallahassee/Leon County (EDC) is excited with this impressive level of investment and ongoing million-dollar payroll that will leave a lasting and positive influence on our regional economy,” said Brad Day, executive director of the ECD. “With the recruitment of research and development activities like this, our community continues to earn its reputation as a technology-rich economy.”

On the ASC site, hosted at Madison, they don’t spin the story quite the same way - Breaking News: ASC will be teaming up with NHMFL in Tallahassee, FL in 2006. Still that headline links directly to the FSU news release.