About the NSRC Program

The Nanoscale Science Research Centers (NSRCs) are a set of DOE Office of Science sponsored research user facilities available for use by the international science community to advance scientific and technical knowledge in the areas of nanoscale science. The NSRC Program is a major component of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science contribution to the U.S. Government National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). NNI involves twenty departments and agencies that collaborate toward "a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the nanoscale leads to a revolution in technology and industry that benefits society.” The Office of Science supports five NSRCs that are strategically located in DOE national laboratories across the U.S. The nanoscience centers are co-located with other major nanoscience-related user facilities such as neutron or synchrotron light sources.

The mission of the NSRCs is twofold: to enable the external scientific community to carry out high-impact nanoscience projects through an open, peer-reviewed user program, and to conduct in-house research to discover, understand, and exploit functional nanomaterials for society’s benefit. To fulfill this mission, the NSRCs house the most advanced facilities for nanoscience research and employ world-class scientists who are experts in nanoscience and enjoy working with external users.

The NSRCs complement each other with their instrumentation and capabilities, the different thrusts of their in-house research programs, and the technical expertise of their staffs.

The NSRC Program

• Operates a national network of geographically distributed Facilities that leverage other facilities and expertise at DOE National Laboratories.
• Has world-leading capabilities and scientific expertise to create, characterize and understand novel nano-structured materials.
• Provides state-of-the-art nanoscience tools and expertise for research by non-profit or business organizations, whether small or large, for use-inspired research.
• Is available free-of-charge for non-proprietary work if the user intends to publish the research results in open literature.
• Serves users from all U.S. states and many countries around the world.
• Enables thousands of scientists to perform cutting edge nanoscience research each year.
• Contributes to the success of America’s current and future research leaders.

The complementary capabilities of the NSRCs and their synergy with other facilities in the hosting national laboratories make the NRSC Program unique in the world.