Nanofab News Item
Groundbreaking for the Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building
The Sorenson USTAR Building contains a ~6,000 square foot, purpose-built, class-1000 cleanroom nanofab, an enlarged microscopy core with full analysis, characterization, sample preparation and imaging of both solid-state and biological materials. It will play host to many new research collaboration opportunities, due to the confluence of research spaces, common-use labs, and supporting facilities used by researchers and industry from the mountain west region and all over campus (medical sciences, engineering, and the hard sciences). The 200,000-square-foot building will support 25 new senior faculty researchers, plus new junior faculty, administrative and laboratory personnel. Environmentally, the building is planned for LEED-gold certification, the second on campus to date, after the Sutton Geology and Geophysics Building.
The cleanroom will house state-of-the-art fabrication tools for producing heterogeneous microsystems, including electronic, photonic, microfluidic and mechanical functionality. Sensors, bio-implants, actuators and other device test beds are all fabricated in this facility. Companies use the facilities and expertise to conceive and test marketable devices and products, spinning off new, local manufacturing plants and creating new jobs.
Key fabrication equipment and USTAR-supporting instrumentation will be consolidated from points around campus and combined with new tools, including acquisitions planned through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, together making Utah a world-class location for biomedical sensors research, and supporting many other related research activities.
http://www.innovationutah.com/USTARBuildings.htm
Philosophy
All instruments will be operated as user instruments where students with significant needs for data are trained to operate the system. Expert staff assistance will also be available to collect data for researchers with infrequent needs or no interest in being trained. Only trained users will be able to operate the equipment. Training will involve a semester long special topics course or working one-on-one with a staff person until deemed competent to operate the system.
A steering committee will oversee the instrument and act as its advocate within the university community.