The North Carolina Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network, made up of North Carolina State University, Duke University, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will enable innovation and commercialization of new promising nanotechnologies. Shown here is a researcher examining a photomask for a patterning sample at the Chapel Hill Analytical and Nanofabrication Laboratory at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Credit: Dan Sears, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The Northwest Nanotechnology Infrastructure site will serve as a prime resource for nanotechnology researchers and engineers for a large geographical area from the Pacific Coast to Montana and from southern Oregon to the Canadian border and beyond. Shown here are gold nanoparticles with the lattice structure of rows of atoms. Samples such as this are often used to train new users in microscopy techniques.

Credit: Ellen Lavoie, Material Analysis Facility, University of Washington

The Soft and Hybrid Nanotechnology Experimental Resource NNCI site, a collaborative venture between Northwestern University and the University of Chicago, will work on a new approach for biomolecular sensing. Shown here is an artist's rendering of the technique.

Credit: Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center

The San Diego Nanotechnology Infrastructure, one of the 16 new NNCI sites will advance nanoscale science and engineering and develop transformative nanotechnologies and nanotechnology-based startups. Shown here are researchers in UCSD nanofabrication facility using the sputtering systems deposit metal and dielectric thin films, a common step for nanofabrication. Access to specialized spaces such as this offer users a broad selection of material choices without the concern of cross contamination.

Credit: Doug Ramsey, Qualcomm Institute, UCSD

The NNCI Kentucky Multi-scale Manufacturing and Nano Integration Node is a collaboration between the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky focused on integrating manufacturing technology over widely different length scales. With nanotechnology now integral to scientific discovery and engineering, there is a pressing need for infrastructure that supports the rapid and effective prototyping of nano-scale devices in macro-scale systems. Shown here is a heat-driven gas pump with no moving parts, which makes it less likely to break.

Credit: Shamus McNamara, MicroNanoTechnology Center, University of Louisville and the KY nanoNET

The scientific and engineering investigations of ultra-small objects, known as nano-materials, are not only revolutionizing critical fields such as medicine, personal electronics and national security, but also are sharpening our understanding of how the Earth works. For instance, the Virginia Tech National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology Infrastructure will support researchers who work with nanoscience- and nanotechnology-related aspects of the Earth and environmental sciences and engineering at local, regional and global scales, including the land, atmospheric, water and biological components of these fields. Shown here is an electron tomographic image of a cluster of iron oxide nanocrystals, captured with state-of-the-art tools. The crystals are approximately 40 nanometers across (a sheet of paper is about 100,000 nanometers thick).

Credit: Mitsu Murayama, Virginia Tech