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| Argonne's Center for Nanoscale Materials | |
|---|---|
| Name | Center for Nanoscale Materials |
| Established | 2007 |
| Location | Lemont, Illinois |
| Affiliation | Argonne National Laboratory |
| Director | Argonne National Laboratory leadership |
| Type | User facility |
Argonne's Center for Nanoscale Materials
Argonne's Center for Nanoscale Materials is a U.S. Department of Energy nanoscale science user facility at Argonne National Laboratory located near Chicago. It supports interdisciplinary research in nanoscience and nanotechnology by providing access to advanced synchrotron-linked tools, electron microscopy capabilities, and state-of-the-art fabrication environments, serving users from universities, national laboratories, and industry. The center collaborates broadly across programs such as the Office of Science, Advanced Photon Source, and national initiatives in materials research.
The center operates as a user facility within Argonne National Laboratory and is integrally connected to the Advanced Photon Source and Leadership Computing Facility to enable coupled experiments with resources employed by investigators from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of Chicago, University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign, Harvard University, Princeton University, California Institute of Technology, Columbia University, and Yale University. It provides cleanroom fabrication, scanning probe microscopy suites, transmission electron microscopy platforms, and characterization labs supporting collaborations with IBM, Intel, Samsung, General Electric, and Boeing. The center contributes to federal strategies in nanotechnology such as those shaped by the National Nanotechnology Initiative and partners with agencies including the National Science Foundation and Department of Energy program offices.
The center emerged from earlier nanoscience efforts at Argonne National Laboratory and the commissioning of the Advanced Photon Source in the 1990s, with formal establishment coincident with DOE user-facility planning in the 2000s. Milestones included construction of cleanroom and microscopy suites funded through DOE capital investments and collaborative agreements with institutions such as University of California, Berkeley, Northwestern University, University of Texas at Austin, and Cornell University. Leadership and scientific staff have included researchers with affiliations to Bell Labs, Sandia National Laboratories, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The facility evolved alongside developments in scanning transmission electron microscopy, x-ray microscopy, and nanoscale fabrication driven by advances at centers like IBM Research, Microsoft Research, and Intel Research.
The center houses a Class 100 and Class 1000 cleanroom with tools for electron beam lithography, photolithography, atomic layer deposition, chemical vapor deposition, and focused ion beam processing. Its microscopy portfolio includes aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy systems, scanning tunneling microscopy arrays, and atomic force microscopy instruments compatible with cryogenic and high-vacuum environments. X-ray and spectroscopy integration leverages beamlines from the Advanced Photon Source and coordination with facilities such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences and Brookhaven National Laboratory. The facility supports in situ capabilities for electrical testing, ultrafast laser excitation, and environmental chambers used by scientists from University of California, Los Angeles, University of Michigan, Purdue University, Rice University, Duke University, and Johns Hopkins University.
Research programs span nanoscale synthesis, quantum materials, nanophotonics, nanoelectronics, energy materials, and biomolecular interfaces. Specific topics include two-dimensional materials like graphene investigations linked to work at Columbia University and University of Manchester, topological insulator studies connected to groups at Princeton University and University of California, Berkeley, and quantum dot research with ties to University of Pennsylvania and University of Cambridge. Energy-relevant studies include battery electrode nanostructuring informed by collaborations with Toyota Research Institute and Tesla, Inc.-adjacent academic teams, catalysis work related to Shell and BP research programs, and photovoltaic device development engaging National Renewable Energy Laboratory investigators. Crosscutting programs include nanomanufacturing and standards efforts coordinated with National Institute of Standards and Technology and international partners such as European Research Council-funded groups.
As a DOE Office of Science user facility, the center offers peer-reviewed access through proposal mechanisms used by researchers from University of California, San Diego, University of Washington, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Scripps Research, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Industry partnerships, Cooperative Research and Development Agreements with General Motors and Dow Chemical Company, and sponsored research align with intellectual property frameworks similar to those at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Argonne's Technology Development and Commercialization. The center hosts joint appointments and visiting scientist programs that interface with initiatives at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, National Institutes of Health, European Organization for Nuclear Research, and KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
Educational programs include internships and fellowships for students from Illinois Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, City Colleges of Chicago, and DePaul University, training in cleanroom safety modeled after curricula at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University. Outreach activities feature workshops for faculty from Historically Black Colleges and Universities such as Howard University and Hampton University, summer school modules inspired by programs at Max Planck Society institutes, and collaborative workforce development with regional economic partners like Metra and Cook County education initiatives. The center contributes to workforce pipelines engaging national programs sponsored by National Science Foundation and Department of Energy.
Achievements include enabling high-resolution imaging and fabrication that supported breakthroughs in two-dimensional material heterostructures reported in journals by teams associated with University of Manchester, Columbia University, and University of California, Berkeley. The center's capabilities advanced research leading to innovations in quantum device prototypes developed in collaboration with IBM, and catalysis discoveries with partners at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Its integration with the Advanced Photon Source enabled time-resolved studies relevant to clean energy initiatives championed by the Department of Energy. The facility has been cited in technology transfer activities and startup formation connected to Argonne's Technology Development and Commercialization efforts, contributing to regional innovation ecosystems involving Illinois Science & Technology Coalition and national competitiveness objectives promoted by the Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Category:Argonne National Laboratory Category:Nanotechnology facilities