Center for Functional Nanomaterials
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The Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN) at Brookhaven National Laboratory will provide state-of-the-art capabilities for the fabrication and study of nanoscale materials, with an emphasis on atomic-level tailoring of nanomaterials to achieve desired properties and functions. Its focus is to achieve a basic understanding of how functional materials, which exhibit a predetermined chemical or physical response to external stimuli, respond when in nanoscale form. As a premier user facility for conducting interdisciplinary research on a variety of functional nanomaterials, the CFN will serve as a focal point and enabler of advanced materials research in the northeastern United States.
The science at the CFN is organized around six Thrust Areas which are identified below. The nanoscience Thrust Areas are expected to evolve and change with time. The equipment at the CFN is sorted into seven Laboratory Facility groups.
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[edit] Scientific themes
Initially, the CFN will focus its science and technology research efforts on six scientific areas:
- Strongly Correlated Oxides: examining changes in the electronic response of metal oxides with nanoscale dimensions
- Magnetic Nanoassemblies: probing magnetic interactions in nanomaterials
- Nanoscale Catalyst Materials: studying new ways to form nanocatalysts and look at their electronic structure and reactivity
- Charge Injection and Transport in Nanoscale Materials: understanding electronic conduction in molecular wires and dots
- Nanostructured Organic Films: Structure and Self-Assembly: studying the self-assembly of thin organic films as well as their molecular and electronic structure.
- Applications of Functional Nanomaterials: building new devices and biological assemblies, such as nanoscale electronic devices, ultrathin-film optical devices, and advanced fuel cell catalysts.
[edit] Facilities and capabilities
The CFN will be housed in a new building consisting of offices and laboratories, located next to the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS). The centerpiece of the facility will be composed of five state-of-the-art groups of laboratories called Laboratory Facilities, a Theory and Computational Center, and a set of advanced endstations on beamlines at the NSLS. The Laboratory Facilities will include forefront capabilities in nanopatterning, transmission electron microscopy, nanomaterials synthesis, ultrafast laser sources, and powerful probes to image atomic and molecular structure, together with clean rooms and other support instrumentation. Access will also be offered to the Laser Electron Accelerator Facility (LEAF).
[edit] User program
The CFN will be operated as a national user facility, accessible to researchers at universities, industrial laboratories, and national laboratories through peerreviewed proposals. The user program will provide access to the Laboratory Facilities and related facilities staffed by laboratory scientists, postdoctoral appointees, and technical support personnel who are active in nanoscience research. Prior to the completion of the CFN facility, the CFN is offering a set of capabilities attractive to scientists working on the nanoscale. The equipment will be offered to users under a proposal system.
