Welcome to SNF!
The Stanford Nanofabrication Facility serves academic, industrial, and governmental researchers across the U.S. and around the globe. More than a lab, it's a vibrant research community. We are one of the four labs that are part of nano@stanford, under the NSF National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure program.
SNF includes a 10,000 sq ft cleanroom housing tools for device fabrication, satellite labs supporting Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD), new Experimental Fabrication methods (ExFab) and the electronics shop for Systems Prototyping (SPF). SNF supports researchers in applications ranging from medicine and biology to fundamental physics and astronomy. We welcome researchers from all disciplines wishing to explore uses of micro- and nano- fabrication.
SNF in the news!
- School of Engineering to upgrade Stanford Nanofabrication Facility. There will be a lot more new tools -- and a lab expansion! This will be a multi-year project, with new tools starting to make their appearance in late 2025 - stay tuned for more info in coming months!
- MicroDicer and microGrater make quick work of tumor dissection. This Stanford Report describes the work of Sindy Tang's lab which makes extensive use of the PT-DSE and the Nanoscribe. Bonus SNF points: This work began as an E241 project!
- Researchers make mouse skin transparent using a common food dye. Also known as the "Doritos mouse skin" discovery featured on NPR and NBC News.
New equipment @SNF
2025 will see a lot of new equipment in the lab, with even more acquisitions under discussion. For more information, check out our new Equipment Acquisition site (please note, access requires a SUNet ID.)
SNF enters the new hydrogen economy!
On Nov. 7, SNF said "Goodbye" to its bulk liquid hydrogen tank. Earlier this year, we commissioned a new on-site hydrogen generation system. And while we are still coming up the learning curve in its operation and maintenance, it's already a money saver (over $100K/year) and has much smaller environmental footprint than bulk H2. What's next? This space will be used to house a new nitrogen generator. Bulk liquid nitrogen accounts for over 10% of SNF's operating costs - and has a large environmental footprint compared with on-site generation. Fabs are expensive and resource-intensive facilities to operate -- anything we can do to reduce costs and reduce ecological impact will help everyone's research dollars go farther and with easier conscience! This investment in SNF's future is made possible by the contributions of the School of Engineering and EH&S.
NW AI Hub of Microelectronics Commons
Stanford and UC Berkeley co-lead the Pacific Northwest AI Hardware Hub, one of eight Microelectronics Commons Hubs, funded by the CHIPS Act under the DoD. The NW AI Hub is comprised of physical and virtual resources (including SNF), brought together to support regional and national needs for lab-to-fab transition of AI hardware. The Northwest-AI-Hub consists of dozens of academic institutions, National Labs, and industry partners, spanning the entire semiconductor value chain, from materials, devices, EDA and chip design, packaging, as well as system prototyping and testing.