An $11.2 million research center created to investigate a new generation of novel materials for electronic devices, optical systems, sensors, video displays, lubricants and adhesives has been established at Stanford University, IBM's Almaden Research Center and UC Davis. One of 11 centers at universities nationwide recently announced by the National Science Foundation, it marks the first time that a corporation has received full partnership in a NSF materials research center. The goal of the new center, called the Center for Polymer Interfaces and Macromolecular Assemblies, is to create and study novel thin films made from long molecules called polymers. The unusual properties of these novel thin films, with layers only a few atoms thick, may make it possible to create optical and electronic devices that are significantly smaller than those that currently exist. They also hold promise in the development of new lubricants and adhesives. "The technology that we are focusing on will likely come into use 10 years down the road," says UC Davis center co-director Pieter Stroeve, a professor in the chemical engineering and materials science department.