Tools and techniques to construct and analyze patterns on the 1-100 nm scale are critical. Both ex-situ and in-situ characterization methods are necessary to fully understand the atomic/molecular level details of nanostructures as well as their collective chemical, electronic, and optical properties.

Researchers at the International Institute for Nanotechnology have access to excellent user facilities for characterization based on electron, ion, and photon radiation, as well as scanning probe techniques. Shared facilities are available for maintaining mechanical/electronic scattering and biophysics/biochemistry instrumentation. Some of the available facilities are listed below, including links to their sites.

Center for Nanofabrication and Molecular Self-Assembly was constructed on the Evanston campus. The facility, which was anchored by a $14 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, is one of the first federally funded facilities of its kind in the United States and home to the Institute headquarters.

The Institute is also a partner with the Center for Nanoscale Materials at Argonne National Laboratory. The CNM is a joint partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the State of Illinois, as part of DOE'S Nanoscale Science Research Center program. The CNM serves as a user-based center, providing tools and infrastructure for nanoscience and nanotechnology research. The CNM's mission includes supporting basic research and the development of advanced instrumentation that will help generate new scientific insights and create new materials with novel properties.

Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental (NUANCE ) Center integrates three existing complementary instrumentation facilities at NU (NIFTI, EPIC, and Keck-II) under a unifed management umbrella and consolidated into contiguous space.

The Nanoscale Imaging, Fabrication, Testing, and Instrumentation (NIFTI) Facility is a multi-user, multi-purpose, open-access facility that provides state-of-the-art soft lithographic writing, imaging, and analysis capabilities. This facility is supported with funding from the State of Illinois.

The Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) houses one of the most complete arsenals of routine and state-of-the-art electron microscopes in the world.

Keck Interdisciplinary Surface Science (Keck-II) Center was established in late 2001 through the support of W. M. Keck Foundation. Keck-II facilitates research, collaboration, education, and outreach in all science from soft biological matter to hard physical matter, specializing in surface analysis and nano-scale characterization.

The Analytical Services Laboratory provides access to most types of chemical analysis instrumentation. NMR spectrometers, mass spectrometers, optical spectrometers, elemental analysis instruments, chromatography instruments, thermal analysis equipment, and X-ray diffractometers are found in this lab.

The J.B. Cohen X-Ray Diffraction Facility includes 10 standard X-ray generators, four rotating anode units, and a variety of goniometers. Also available are three small-angle units, an EXAFS unit, topographic units, and equipment for work with single crystals or powders (from 2 K to 2,500 K). These units are operated from one of the many microprocessors with UNIX-based Sun workstations, part of a time-share system in the laboratory. The laboratory staff is part of a Midwest team operating a beam line at Brookhaven National Laboratory's high-intensity synchrotron X-ray facility and part of a beam line sector at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory.

The Biological Imaging Facility (BIF) supports confocal, fluorescence, and transmission electron microscopy for analysis of research on the cellular level. The facility is organized so users can prepare samples, capture and analyze images, and create final presentations in one room, all with the support of hands-on staff to provide training and suggestions for greatest research success.