UCF Nanoscience Technology Center Completes Renovations

Nanoscience has a large presence at the University of Central Florida and on Friday researchers, students, university officials and guests celebrated the completion of a renovated research facility dedicated to science at the sub-molecular level.

UCF's Nanoscience Technology Center (NSTC), located in the Central Florida Research Park, is a 35,000 square-foot-facility dedicated to advancing research in the field, which has been growing rapidly since the early 2000s.

Nanoscience and nanotechnology deal with materials, devices and systems on a nanometer scale, which is smaller than a single strand of hair or between 1-100 billionth of a meter in size.

The center, which began as a $4 million initiative in 2003, now houses researchers from a variety of disciplines. Chemists, physicists, engineers and biomolecular and optical scientists are some of the specialists that conduct research at the center.

Located on the fourth floor of the Research Pavilion building, the NSTC features a one-of-a-kind hybrid lab where scientists can integrate electrical and neuronal systems to model circuits with neurons from patients with brain disorders such as Parkinson?s and Alzheimer?s disease in hopes of finding a cure. Another project is focusing on spinal cord injuries and the mechanism that keeps some patients from walking.

Other research at the NSTC is using quantum dot nanoparticles to enable physicians to visualize tumors at an earlier stage.

James J. Hickman, director of the center, said that nanoscience is already impacting Central Florida?s economy through the development of a professional workforce in the field and partnerships with area companies such as Raydiance and Vax Design. The center has received millions of dollars in research grants since its inception.