A core competency for IGERT-TEECH Trainees and Investigators is the use of analytical techniques to characterize the art work or artifact - techniques that are physical, chemical or structural. Applying these techniques requires access to facilities such as Calit2's Nano3 facility, which includes many different tools for analyzing tiny samples of varnish, pigment or other piece from a work, ranging from mass spectrometers to high-resolution microscopes. But in the case of art works of great value, taking even the smallest samples from a painting creates damage. A major goal of IGERT-TEECH is to develop portable diagnostic systems that can be brought to a museum or gallery, in order to carry out the diagnostics on a specific work of art using one of the new scanning techniques that allow researchers to characterize the chemistry without damaging the artwork. Assessing the spatial distribution of chemical components on the entire surface of an object - e.g., when scanning an entire wall for evidence of a hidden mural underneath - can be critical. IGERT-TEECH Trainees are involved in the development of novel spectroscopic methods that can be delivered in situ via portable instrumentation.

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