An article titled "Micro/Nano Fabrication of Periodic Hierarchical Structures by Multi-Pulsed Laser Interference Structuring" by A. Lasagni, A. Monzoni, and F. Mucklich has been selected for the cover of the October 2007 issue of Advanced Engineering Materials. The laser interference metallurgy technique presented in this paper allows the creation of periodic patterns of features with a well defined long-range order on metallic surfaces. The cover figure shows periodic hierarchical structures resulting from the combination of interfering laser beams, and laser-induced periodical surface structure (LIPSS) fabricated on an Al layer over Au-substrate.

Dr. Andres Lasagni of the Georgia Institute of Technology and Dr. Fernando Lasagni of the Vienna University of Technology were awarded the 2007 Fritz-Grasenick Prize from the Austrian Society of Electron Microscopy for their contribution in the field of 3D-characterization of Al-alloys by Focused Ion Beam Tomography. The prize is given by the society in an annual competition for the best publication in the field of electron microscopy in the last three years. The Lasagni brothers received the award for their publication "Three Dimensional Characterization of Unmodified and Sr-Modified Al-Si Eutectics by FIB and FIB EDX Tomography" published in the August 2006 issue of Advanced Engineering Materials. The prize was awarded during a ceremony at the Vienna University of Technology on November 23, 2007.

Professor Suman Das has joined the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering as an Associate Professor with tenure. Prior to joining Georgia Tech, he was a tenured Associate Professor (2006-2007) and an Assistant Professor (2000-2006) of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor.

Professor Suman Das has won a $208K grant in the Department of Defense 2007 Dual Use Research and Instrumentation Program (DURIP) for a proposal titled "Parallel Direct Freeform Laser Manufacturing". This grant will support the acquisition of a high power femtosecond laser system to augment the development of a tesbed for massively parallel near-field optical direct-write nanomanufacturing.

A university-industry team led by Professor Suman Das has won a four year $6.25 million grant from DARPA for their proposal titled "Direct Digital Manufacturing of Airfoils" submitted in response to BAA 06-34 "Disruptive Manufacturing Technologies". In addition to Professor Das who will serve as the Principal Investigator, the team involves Professor John Halloran from the University of Michigan, Professor Kanti Jain from the University of Illinois, Dr. Daniel Wright from Anvik Corporation, and Mr. Wil Baker from Honeywell Corporation.

Professor Suman Das has won a three year $592K grant from the Naval Research Laboratory for a proposal titled "Direct Digital Laser Manufacturing of Nickel Superalloy Single Crystal Components" submitted in response to ONR BAA 06-28 titled "Disruptive Technologies for Direct Digital Manufacturing"