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News Release 15-112

$81 million to support new National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure

16 sites to give academic, small business and industry researchers access to nanotechnology research

a researchers holds up a sample

Shared user facilities enable greater national impact of nanotech innovation and commercialization.


September 16, 2015

This material is available primarily for archival purposes. Telephone numbers or other contact information may be out of date; please see current contact information at media contacts.

To advance research in nanoscale science, engineering and technology, the National Science Foundation (NSF) will provide a total of $81 million over five years to support 16 sites and a coordinating office as part of a new National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI).

The NNCI sites will provide researchers from academia, small and large companies, and government with access to university user facilities with leading-edge fabrication and characterization tools, instrumentation, and expertise within all disciplines of nanoscale science, engineering and technology.

The NNCI framework builds on the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN), which enabled major discoveries, innovations, and contributions to education and commerce for more than 10 years.

"NSF's long-standing investments in nanotechnology infrastructure have helped the research community to make great progress by making research facilities available," said Pramod Khargonekar, assistant director for engineering. "NNCI will serve as a nationwide backbone for nanoscale research, which will lead to continuing innovations and economic and societal benefits."

The awards are up to five years and range from $500,000 to $1.6 million each per year. Nine of the sites have at least one regional partner institution. These 16 sites are located in 15 states and involve 27 universities across the nation.

NSF has selected Georgia Tech's Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology to be the NNCI coordinating office. Georgia Tech will receive $3.5 million over five years for this role. This coordinating office will enhance the impact of NNCI sites as a national network of user facilities and will establish a web portal to link the individual facilities' websites to provide a unified entry point to the user community of overall capabilities, tools and instrumentation. The office will also help to coordinate and disseminate best practices for national-level education and outreach programs across sites.

Funding for the NNCI program is provided by all NSF directorates and the Office of International Science and Engineering.

New NNCI awards:

Note: This release was updated on April 4, 2016 to include information on selection of the NNCI coordinating office.

-NSF-

Media Contacts
Sarah Bates, NSF, (703) 292-7738, email: sabates@nsf.gov

Program Contacts
Lawrence S. Goldberg, NSF, (703) 292-8339, email: lgoldber@nsf.gov
Guebre X. Tessema, NSF, (703) 292-4935, email: gtessema@nsf.gov

The U.S. National Science Foundation propels the nation forward by advancing fundamental research in all fields of science and engineering. NSF supports research and people by providing facilities, instruments and funding to support their ingenuity and sustain the U.S. as a global leader in research and innovation. With a fiscal year 2023 budget of $9.5 billion, NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 40,000 competitive proposals and makes about 11,000 new awards. Those awards include support for cooperative research with industry, Arctic and Antarctic research and operations, and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts.

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