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SEI@TNF

Social and Ethical Implications Research at the Texas Nanofabrication Facility, UT-Austin

Texas Nanofabrication Facility (TNF)

The Texas Nanofabrication Facility is a member of the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI), which is supported by the National Science Foundation (Grant ECCS-1542159).

Our vision at TNF is to:

  1. Enable and foster breakthrough nano-innovation in the areas of electronics, healthcare, and energy – all of which have significant presence in Texas;
  2. Establish educational activities in nanotechnology directed at engaging underrepresented minorities and women; and
  3. Research how nano-scientists think about and make sense of the social and ethical implications of the work they do.

TNF consists of four centers (detailed below) with a physical presence at the University of Texas at Austin. This partnership of centers offers users (research associates, professors, start-ups, and small and large company users) access to the spaces and equipment housed within the centers. Users of the spaces and equipment are supported by TNF’s network of 24 professionals (technicians, engineers, and administrative staff).

Information on how to become a user of the TNF facilities can be found within the links below. 

Microelectronics Research Center (MRC) The Texas Nanofabrication Facility is built around the shared NNIN MRC facilities and experienced staff. The facilities at MRC  includes 12,000 ft2 of class 100 and class 1000 cleanroom space for device processing and 15,000 ft2 of other labs housing ~70 shared nanofabrication and characterization tools. 

Texas Material Institute (TMI) TMI greatly expands the microscopy (e.g., TEM, STEM, etc.) and surface characterization (e.g., TOF-SIMS, XPS, AES, Raman, etc.) capabilities.

The Center for Nano and Molecular Sciences (CNM) CNM brings a complementary suite of top-down and bottom-up nanofabrication tools. 

Nanomanufacturing Systems for Mobile Computing and Mobile Energy Technologies (NASCENT) Capabilities in roll-to-roll manufacturing, as well as wafer-scale nanoimprint and crystalline wafer exfoliation, will be provided through NASCENT NERC staff for external users at a moderate fee.

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