We create materials and energy solutions.
Ames National Laboratory is a global leader in the discovery, synthesis, analysis, and application of new materials, novel chemistries, and transformational analytical tools. We conduct fundamental and applied research that helps the world to better understand the nature of the building blocks that make up our universe, and we translate that knowledge into new and unique materials, processes, and technologies that advance the nation’s economic competitiveness and enhance national security.
The U.S. Department of Energy and Iowa State University are conducting a search for Ames National Laboratory's next director. This position offers the opportunity to lead one of the premier materials science, engineering, and chemistry institutions in the nation, and to help shape multi-institutional research efforts across U.S. DOE laboratories, universities, and industrial partnerships.
Learn more about Ames National Laboratory on this page, and about the leadership position at this LINK.
We make discoveries for a sustainable future.
Ames Lab research emphasizes the optimal use and r
e-use of global resources. We create alternative materials from abundant resources, reduce the use of strategically important materials, and efficiently separate and create valuable resources from dilute and waste materials. Ames National Laboratory leads the Critical Materials Institute, a DOE Energy Innovation Hub dedicated to finding substitutes, diversifying supply, reuse, recycling and other methods to secure the supply chain of rare earth and other critical materials. The Institute for the Cooperative Upcycling of Plastics, a DOE Energy Frontier Research Center at Ames National Laboratory, seeks to transform waste plastics into high value chemical products such as lubricants, surfactants, and new plastic materials that have sustainable lifecycles.
We make 
every atom count.
Increasingly, advances in materials science for technological applications rely on a thorough understanding of materials at an atomic and subatomic level of detail. Ames Lab researchers are globally recognized investigators of the interfacial, molecular, and electronic phenomena necessary to create new and transformative capabilities. Their skills in synthesis of new materials and development of their applications speed the adoption of myriad new technologies. Ames National Laboratory is the home of the Center for the Advancement of Topological Semimetals, a DOE Energy Frontier Research Center dedicated to advancing the understanding of complex topological materials. Ames National Laboratory is a partner in the Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center, led by Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and one of five research centers funded by the U.S. Department of Energy as part of a national initiative to develop and deploy the world’s most powerful quantum computers and sensors.
We innovate for science & industry.
Translating fundamental science into applications requires the precise synthesis of high quality materials and direction of chemical transformations, translating them into larger scale approaches suitable for industry. Through multi-institutional collaborations, industry partnerships, and technology licensing, we have a proven track record of transitioning basic energy science through early-stage research to commercialization.
We share our science.
Ames Laboratory invests in the future of science through education programs and mentorships which nurture undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral, and early career scientists. Our outreach programs are designed to promote early interest in STEM fields to K-12 students in the state of Iowa.
Our Sensitive Instrument Facility houses state-of-the-art microscopy equipment in a building constructed to eliminate vibration and electrical interference.
Our Metals Preparation Center offers purification, preparation, and characterization capabilities available nowhere else.
Our Solid-State NMR Laboratory supports research across divisions and is equipped to carry out nearly any NMR experiment imaginable