News Releases

Ames National Laboratory opens Advanced Magnet Facility

The U. S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Ames National Laboratory celebrated a major milestone on March 10 with the official opening of its new Advanced Magnet Facility (AMF), marking a significant investment in U. S. leadership in magnet science and critical materials research.

Dan Culhane, President, Ames Regional Economic Alliance; ISU President David J. Cook; Karl Mueller, Director, Ames National Laboratory; Audrey Robertson, Assistant Secretary of Energy (EERE), Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI)

Iowa Regional High School Science Bowl to be held Saturday

Ames National Laboratory and Iowa State University will host the 36th annual Iowa Regional High School Science Bowl on Saturday, Mar. 7, 2025. The event will take place on the Iowa State campus.

Students from a HS Science Bowl team during the event

Congratulations to the 2026 Iowa Regional Middle School Science Bowl winners!

Congratulations to the North Middle School team for winning the 20206 Iowa Regional Middle School Science Bowl, hosted by Ames National Laboratory and Iowa State University.

Iowa Regional Middle School Science Bowl to be held Feb. 21

Ames National Laboratory and Iowa State University will host the 23rd annual Iowa Regional Middle School Science Bowl on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, on the Iowa State University campus. The day-long competition will be supported by volunteers from both the Ames Lab and Iowa State communities.

Students at a previous regional Science Bowl event.

AI-Powered National Lab collaboration launches to secure U.S. critical minerals supply

A powerful new initiative—Critical Minerals and Materials to Unlock Supply (CM2US)—is harnessing artificial intelligence to transform how the U.S. discovers, develops, and delivers the critical minerals essential to modern technologies

Ames Lab researchers awarded funding for new approach to critical mineral extraction

A team of researchers at Ames National Laboratory recently received funding to develop new biological approaches to capture these critical materials from low-concentration sources. The team will combine synthetic biology, machine learning, automated laboratory systems, and molecular modeling to create an advanced platform for capturing valuable minerals from sources such as mine tailings and wastewater.

CMI technology for rare earth processing licensed to Principal Mineral

Researchers have developed a new technology for processing rare earth metals that has now been licensed to Principal Mineral.

New quantum echo discovered in superconductors

Scientists at the U. S. Department of Energy Ames National Laboratory and Iowa State University have discovered an unexpected "quantum echo" in a superconducting material. This discovery provides insight into quantum behaviors that could be used for next-generation quantum sensing and computing technologies.

Axion quasiparticles detected in a collaboration including Ames National Laboratory and Harvard University

Researchers have observed magnetic excitations that mimic the properties of an axion particle in a collaborative effort including the U.S. Department of Energy Ames National Laboratory and led by Harvard University. The axion is a particle that has been theorized to explain the dark matter that exists throughout the universe. A discovery like this one has the potential to solve several mysteries in quantum field theory and may even be used to detect real axions in the universe.

Mueller named director of U.S. Department of Energy's Ames National Laboratory

Karl Mueller has been named the new director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames National Laboratory, operated by Iowa State University. His tenure begins June 1.