Become a User

Use of NNF facilities

The NCMN Central Facilities are open to all qualified researchers at UNL, other universities, and industrial and other laboratories upon payment of the appropriate charges.

All users must obtain appropriate training and instruction specific to each instrument from the facility specialist. For training to be completed, users must demonstrate sufficient proficiency before and during equipment usage. Most instruments require a reservation before use. In the unlikely event that more than one researcher simultaneously needs equipment, members of the UNL community receive priority. In a temporary closure, the facility specialist will give timely notification whenever possible.

All users are required to take all appropriate safety training from the University Environmental Health and Safety (EHS). The EHS requires basic laboratory safety training, including a core safety orientation, a core injury and illness prevention plan (IIPP), and core emergency preparedness training. In addition to the basic safety training, each facility may require further training, such as X-ray safety training to use the X-Ray Characterization Facility.

In general, facilities are open at all times to qualified users. Still, due to specific technical complexities associated with the safe operation of equipment, access to the facilities outside regular working hours is limited to trained and experienced or expert users only. It is at the discretion of the facility specialist. Expert users are those who have demonstrated the ability to operate the equipment alone without seeking help from the specialist, who has successfully used a particular instrument at least 5 times without causing any issues, and has obtained permission from the specialist to make specific hardware changes, if applicable, by strictly following instructions received from the specialist.