The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT; Cambridge, MA) will construct a new 200,000-square-foot building, called “MIT.nano,” to be finished by 2018; at the center of the MIT campus, MIT.nano will house state-of-the-art cleanroom, imaging, and prototyping facilities supporting research on nanoscale materials and processes.
An estimated 2000 MIT researchers may ultimately make use of the building, says electrical engineering professor Vladimir Bulović, faculty lead on the MIT.nano project and associate dean for innovation in the School of Engineering. Research will occur in fields that include energy, health, life sciences, quantum sciences, electronics, and manufacturing.
EMI- and vibration-isolated space
MIT.nano will house two interconnected floors of cleanroom laboratories containing fabrication spaces and materials growth laboratories. The building will also include a floor optimized for low vibration and minimal electromagnetic interference (EMI), dedicated to advanced imaging technologies. The facility will also include teaching and research space, known as a computer-aided visualization environment (CAVE), allowing high-resolution views of nanoscale features.
MIT.nano will use heat-recovery systems on the building’s exhaust vents. The building will also be able to sense the local cleanroom environment and adjust the need for air exchange, reducing MIT.nano’s energy consumption.
An estimated one-quarter of MIT’s graduate students and 20% of its researchers will make use of the facility, says Bulović.
Source: http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/new-building-will-be-hub-for-nanoscale-research-0429
