The CNF is one of the sixteen members of the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI).
The CNF was started as part of a National Science Foundation initiative in 1977, and has subsequently been partially supported by several other NSF programs.
It now includes 15,000 square feet of Level 1000 cleanroom as well as several times more non-cleanroom laboratory space.
[6] The CNF is used for research in a wide range of fields such as MEMS, microfluidics, nanomagnetics and bioelectronics.
It also contains characterization equipment including scanning electron microscopes, ellipsometers and probe stations for electrical measurement.