Abstract:
The California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) at UCLA serves as a nexus for innovation in nanoscience research and an engine to translate discoveries into knowledge-driven commercial enterprises. Created in 2001 as one of four California Institutes for Science and Innovation, CNSI comprises a multi-disciplinary team of preeminent scientists from the life and physical sciences, engineering, and medicine. The Institute’s 190,000 square foot building fosters innovation and entrepreneurship by leveraging leading-edge facilities and professional services alongside a unique opportunity to grow small businesses within the UCLA research ecosystem. The CNSI Core Technology Centers provide truly unrestricted access to a collection of the world’s most advanced instrumentation for fabrication, characterization and screening of nanomaterials, systems, and devices under one roof, supporting over 5,000 individual researchers from academia and industry. Tasked with defining state-of-the-art, the Centers develop instrumentation, methods, and technologies through collaborative research and industrial partnerships. The CNSI Incubator Program supports entrepreneurship and accelerates the transfer of new technologies from the laboratory to the commercial marketplace by providing a translational pipeline built on training, collaboration and world-class infrastructure including dedicated laboratory spaces (fume hoods, tissue culture labs, air handling, gas supply and hazardous waste disposal) as well as robust administrative support (procurement, mail handling, high-speed internet access, a 260-seat auditorium, large presentation space, plus full-service meeting and conferencing infrastructure). Currently hosting 20 startup companies, the CNSI Incubator serves as a test-bed for small business incubation and technology transfer, which promises to enhance an already burgeoning culture of entrepreneurship within the UC community. As an established leader in nanosystems research and industry relations, CNSI produces important discoveries in health, information technology, energy, and the environment that deliver impactful technological solutions to major societal challenges.