Welcome to the Web site for the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences (CNMS), located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The CNMS is a highly collaborative user research facility for the synthesis, characterization, theory/ modeling/ simulation, and design of nanoscale materials and structures, and the understanding of nanoscale phenomena. The CNMS Scientific Program—originally defined collaboratively through Planning Workshops with the national scientific community—focuses on fundamental challenges of nanoscale science as well as nanotechnology opportunities and needs. Among these are the integration of “hard” and “soft” materials in functional structures, through the development of new synthesis and assembly methods; the understanding and control of nanoscale interfaces; computational nanoscience challenges such as multi-scale modeling, virtual synthesis, and the design of functional nanomaterials; and the use of neutron scattering's unique capabilities, complementary to other techniques, to probe both soft and magnetic materials at the nanoscale, particularly in connection with complex, self-organizing behavior.

The ramp-up of operations in the new CNMS building provides users with access, within our seven Scientific Themes and Nanofabrication Research Laboratory, to a rapidly growing range of tools and collaborative expertise needed for nanoscience research, in a single location. Two special strengths of the scientific program are its support for the design of materials and structures with enhanced properties and functionalities, and its extensive use of nanoscale controlled synthesis as a tool for scientific discovery. For design, the CNMS Nanomaterials Theory Institute (NTI) can provide access to the National Center of Computational Sciences (NCCS) within selected areas of high-end capability computing, e.g. simulations of strongly correlated electron systems using Hubbard and spin-Fermion models, as well as ab initio simulations of nanomagnets. The NTI also supports an expanded international program of Computational Nanoscience Focused User Laboratories (NanoFocULs). For nanofabrication, the Nanofabrication Research Laboratory provides clean rooms, a suite of electron microscopes, nanoscale patterning capabilities, and will develop special facilities and techniques for the manipulation and functional integration of soft and hard materials.

In response to the enthusiastic interest expressed by the scientific community, ORNL and the DOE’s Office of Basic Energy Sciences jointly sponsored a limited “Jump Start” of collaborative nanoscience user research during FY2004-2005, using existing ORNL facilities and staff. Since then we have conducted the ramp-up toward full operations in FY2008 by issuing three Calls for Proposals (the most recent closing November 6, 2006) and holding two national User Meetings (the most recent June 14-16, 2006). Both our most recent Call for Proposals and the 2006 User Meeting program are accessible from our website home page, and place special emphasis on several new research areas, including catalysis and the synthesis of selective nanoscale catalysts; oxide heterostructures and the design and study of artificial oxides; and nanoscale magnetism and quantum transport in nanostructured materials. At the end of FY2006 the CNMS was supporting more than 150 user research proposals.

I urge you to review the FY2007 CNMS Research Capabilities as well as the detailed information about these that was presented by our leaders during the 2006 User Meeting, using the links from our website home page. Please also feel free to contact our scientific leaders if you have more detailed questions (using the information found at “Contact Us”), or get in touch with the CNMS User Coordinator, Dr. Tony Haynes, for questions about the user program.

We thank you for your interest and look forward to working with you as a CNMS User.

Doug Lowndes, CNMS Scientific Director