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Analytical Instrumentation Facility

AIF’s History & Goals

The AIF was originally called the Engineering Experiment Station in 1923 and was created by the Board of Trustees of the College of Agricultre and Engineering. The facility’s name was officially changed to Analytical Instrumentation Facility in 1982.

The mission was to provide services to academic departments in support of instruction and research, to
industry, and to state and federal laboratories. This remains the function of AIF today.

AIF’s Strategic Goals

  1. Enrich on-campus research by enhancing communication, graduate education and leveraging interdisciplinarity
  2. Strengthen relations with external communities to enhance the North Carolina workforce and economy
  3. Build the next-generation infrastructure that will enable new breakthrough research of tomorrow
  4. Enhance operational and organizational excellence

Through the support of engaged faculty and experienced staff, the AIF supports state-of-the-art scanning and transmission electron microscopes, X-ray scattering and spectroscopy instruments, time-of-flight mass spectrometry, scanning probe microscopy, nanoindentation, and extensive sample preparation facilities. Some of specialized capabilities of these instruments include chemically-sensitive atomic-scale imaging, extreme-resolution SEM of insulating and soft materials, in situ high temperature and electric-field-dependent X-ray diffraction, and in situ microscopy during heating, electrical current, immersion in fluids, and in flowing gases (to name a few). The AIF is constantly acquiring new instruments and developing new capabilities.

AIF serves users from all over campus. Typically, the AIF sees over 400 unique users from over 150 Principal Investigator groups across campus. In addition, the AIF supports materials characterization services and/or laboratory access to external government, industrial, and other academic researchers. The AIF is heavily involved in student training/education and engagement with the community, offering between 30-50 short courses per year and around 50 laboratory tours to visitors, industry researchers, and classrooms.

AIF sees over 400 unique users from over 150 Principal Investigator groups across campus.

The AIF participated in a multi-institutional team that successfully competed for a site in the NSF’s new National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI). This award, forming the Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network (RTNN), is external recognition of the quality of research infrastructure available within the AIF and other facilities on campus. The vision of the RTNN is to be a national focal point for enabling innovative nanoscience and nanotechnology research, discovery, workforce development and education through: (1) open access to an evolving and integrated suite of cutting-edge fabrication and characterization facilities, (2) engagement of faculty and user populations with diverse research expertise to support the development of new processes, tools, and instrumentation, and (3) innovative training programs, outreach, and meetings/workshops to reach and educate new user populations.