CNI Shared Laboratories

CNI Shared Laboratories provide access to cutting-edge equipment and services for student and faculty researchers at Columbia University, external academic institutions, as well as researchers from government, entrepreneurial ventures, and industrial companies.

Researcher in full cleanroom gown operating a mask aligner in the lithography bay, aligning a photomask over a wafer for UV exposure during microfabrication

Cleanroom

The CNI Nano Fabrication Cleanroom offers access to a comprehensive set of tools for micro-/nano-fabrication for applications such as nano-electronic/photonic devices, micro and nano-electromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS), flexible electronics, nano-bio interfaces, and more.

User operating the X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) system in the Shared Materials Characterization Lab, preparing a sample for surface chemical analysis

Shared Materials Characterization

The Shared Materials Characterization Lab provides materials researchers with access to state-of-the-art microscopy, spectroscopy and diffractometry instrumentation. It supports research across many different departments within Columbia University and welcomes researchers from other academic institutions, government laboratories, and industrial users.

User adjusting control interface of the Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) in the Electron Microscopy Lab to capture high-resolution images of a nanoscale sample

Electron Microscopy

The mission of the facility is to train students and researchers in theory and practice of scanning and transmission electron microscopy and to provide research and education services to the Columbia and greater New York communities.

Users are charged nominal fees for the use of individual instruments. These charges are intended to cover the cost of machine regular maintenance and consumables. The labs do not seek to profit from user charges.

Where do I sign up?

In order to become a user of our labs, click on the respective lab of interest and follow the access protocol (Cleanroom, SMCL, and EM). Sign up for the CNI labs newsletter,  using this link (CNI labs newsletter), for important lab related announcements, and open a Badger account which is required for the use of all of our labs. The new user account form for internal users can be downloaded here: New User Account Form.

  • Full list of the shared labs equipment - PDF

  • Download our Equipment list flyer - PDF

  • Detailed list of the shared labs equipment - PDF (updated March 2023)

  • Price list for internal academic users using the CNI Labs - PDF .

  • Check out our External Users Program for lab users outside of Columbia.

Users of the lab are strongly encouraged to acknowledge CNI labs and MRSEC facilities in their publications using this recommended wording:

“The authors acknowledge the use of facilities and instrumentation supported by NSF through the Columbia University, Columbia Nano Initiative, and the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center DMR-2011738”.

For more information please contact Dr. Jacob Trevino or email cnilabs@columbia.edu.