CCI: Choosing a Lab

Below are brief descriptions of each of the DOE laboratories. To visit a laboratory homepage, click on the laboratory's name below. In addition to reading information on each laboratory that interests you, you are encouraged to take a look at some of the student abstracts from the years 2000 through 2008 and descriptions of research performed by various labs listed below.

Each lab is funded from the Office of Science for a different number of CCI students. The number of CCI students for the past summer is listed for most labs. The Community College Institute internships are available at the following DOE laboratories:

Ames Laboratory

Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory seek solutions to energy-related problems through the exploration of chemical, engineering, materials and mathematical sciences, and physics. Established in the 1940s with the successful development of the most efficient process to produce high-purity uranium metal for atomic energy, Ames Lab now pursues much broader priorities than the materials research that has given the Lab international credibility. Responding to issues of national concern, Lab scientists are actively involved in innovative research, science education programs, the development of applied technologies and the quick transfer of such technologies to industry. Uniquely integrated within a university environment, the Lab stimulates creative thought and encourages scientific discovery, providing solutions to complex problems and educating tomorrow's scientific talent.

Ames Laboratory is located in Ames, Iowa, on the campus of Iowa State University. Iowa State’s 2,000-acre, park-like campus is home to over 26,000 students. Ames is approximately 30 minutes north of Des Moines, Iowa’s capitol city.

Argonne National Laboratory

Argonne National Laboratory performs research that falls into four broad categories:
(1) Basic science includes experimental and theoretical work in materials science, physics, chemistry, biology, high-energy physics, mathematics, and computer science. (2) Scientific facilities designs, builds, and operates sophisticated research facilities that would be too expensive for a single company or university to build and operate. These include the Intense Pulsed Neutron Source, the Argonne Tandem Linear Accelerator System and the Advanced Photon Source. (3) Energy resources programs help ensure a reliable supply of efficient and clean energy for the future and include developing advanced batteries and fuel cells, as well as advanced electrical power generation systems. (4) Environmental management includes alternative energy systems; environmental risk and economic impact assessments; hazardous waste site analysis and remediation planning; electrometallurgical treatment to prepare spent nuclear fuel for disposal; and new technologies for decontaminating and decommissioning aging nuclear reactors.

Argonne National Laboratory is surrounded by forest preserve and located about 25 miles southwest of Chicago's Loop.

Brookhaven National Laboratory

The home of five Nobel Prize-winning discoveries, Brookhaven is a major multidisciplinary laboratory that carries out basic and applied world-class research in physical, biomedical and environmental sciences, as well as energy technologies. Brookhaven sponsors programs for students and faculty in physics, biology, chemistry, medical science, environmental science, and many other areas. Educational placements range from working with physicists to probe the nature of matter at Brookhaven's newest accelerator, the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, to investigating the structure of proteins with biologists at the National Synchrotron Light Source.

Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory

Scientists at Fermilab conduct basic research in high-energy physics, the science of matter, space, and time. The Lab is home to the world's highest-energy particle accelerator, which about 2,500 scientists use to study the structure of matter and the forces that govern our universe. Experiments at Fermilab can involve hundreds of scientists from all over the world who work for years designing and constructing large detectors and then taking and analyzing data. Undergraduates have an opportunity to work on projects that support these particle physics experiments in areas such as engineering, applied physics and computing. In addition, the Fermilab site offers opportunities for environmental studies particularly in the hundreds of acres of restored tall grass prairie.

Located in Batavia, Illinois, Fermilab is 30 miles west of Chicago's loop. While at Fermilab you can enjoy a range of outdoor activities (sorry no mountains or oceans) or take advantage of the cultural resources of a large metropolitan area. Go Cubs!

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's research and development includes new energy technologies and environmental solutions with a focus on energy efficiency, electric reliability, carbon management and global climate change, and fusion. Frontier research experiences exist in nanoscience, genomics and cancer research, advanced computing, and observing matter and energy at the most fundamental level in the universe. Ernest Orlando Lawrence founded Berkeley Lab, in 1931. Lawrence invented the cyclotron, which led to a Golden Age of particle physics, the foundation of modern nuclear science, and revolutionary discoveries about the nature of the universe. Berkeley Lab's Advanced Light Source is its premier national user facility located centrally on the lab site overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a premier research and development institution for science and technology applied to national security. We are responsible for ensuring that the nation's nuclear weapons remain safe, secure, and reliable. LLNL also applies its expertise to prevent the spread and use of weapons of mass destruction and strengthen homeland security.

Our national security mission requires special multidisciplinary capabilities that are also used to pursue programs in advanced defense technologies, energy, environment, biosciences, and basic science to meet important national needs. These activities enhance the competencies needed for our defining national security mission. The Laboratory serves as a resource to the U.S. government and is a partner with industry and academia. Safe, secure, and efficient operations and scientific and technical excellence in our programs are necessary to sustain public trust in the Laboratory. LLNL is located Livermore is located in the Tri-Valley region East of San Francisco on Interstate 580 providing easy access to both the Central Valley and San Francisco Bay metropolitan area. It is served by public bus transportation, and links to the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system to help visitor move about the community. Major airports are located in San Jose, Oakland , Sacramento, and San Francisco .

SULI and CCI applicants will be considered for the HCDAssist program which is sponsored by the LLNL Hazards Control Department. Assist strives to educate students about the ever-expanding field of applied safety in a scientific research and development environment.

This program places students in any one of several safety fields within the LLNL Hazards Control Department. Students will collaborate with safety and research professionals on projects related to the development and application of safety concepts in support of cutting-edge laboratory research efforts.

Project opportunities combine hands-on experience with technical development in such areas as:
* bio-safety
* computer applications development
* ergonomics
* industrial hygiene/chemical safety
* industrial safety
* radiation safety
* safety education and training

HCDAssist participants will have the opportunity to:
* experience applied safety within a dynamic, multi-disciplinary environment
* work and network with LLNL safety and research professionals
* participate in seminars and facility tours, both specially for the HCD interns
as well as the lab-side LLNL intern program

Requirements include:
* being an undergraduate student in good standing,
* have a GPA of 3.0 minimum (prefer 3.5+ GPA) * be a US citizen
* majoring in biology, chemistry, computer science and management information
systems, environmental science, fire science, general science, health science, industrial engineering, industrial hygiene, nuclear engineering, occupational safety, physics, radiological health/health physics, or related fields.

Los Alamos National Laboratory

LANL may require background checks for accepted students prior to final approval for placement at the lab.

The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), located in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico , offers the opportunity for students to work at a multi-disciplinary, world-class research facility while enjoying a truly unique environment. Long known for its artistic community, northern New Mexico also offers a variety of exciting outdoor recreational opportunities, including rock climbing and hiking in the adjacent mountains and canyons, proximity to the Rocky Mountains, and exceptional skiing opportunities at many nearby locations.

We offer a diverse research experience for undergraduate and graduate students as a means of assuring the continued vibrancy of the science, engineering, and technology at the Laboratory. Serve your internship with us and you will have the opportunity to work in a team environment with some of the world's top scientists and engineers on critical issues involving our national security, environment, infrastructure, and security. We offer internship opportunities in areas that include: Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics, Materials Science, Environmental Science, and Engineering: Chemical, Civil, Computer, Electrical, Mechanical, Nuclear, Software.

Nuclear forensics encompasses the application of many and widely varying disciplines in science and technology. Chemists, geochemists, and materials scientists perform the essential measurements to evaluate signatures that can distinguish the origin of interdicted nuclear or radiological materials. Nuclear chemists, physicists, and engineers develop tools to rapidly characterize and quantify the composition of complex mixtures of isotopes in debris in the wake of a nuclear or radiological event.

Nuclear Forensics is at the interface between physical science, prosecution, non-proliferation, and counter-terrorism. The term refers to the thorough analysis and characterization of pre-and post-detonation radiological and nuclear materials, devices, and debris, as well as prompt effects from a nuclear detonation. Such forensics are an integral component of the broader goal of attribution, which entails merging the results from the forensic analyses, along with information from various intelligence and law enforcement sources, to identify those responsible for a planned or actual attack using radiological or nuclear materials.

If you are a problem solver and independent thinker, a team player, a good communicator, like a hands-on approach, and are self-motivated, we offer you the challenge of an internship at Los Alamos National Laboratory. To learn more about the student programs at LANL click here.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

NREL is the nation's leading laboratory for renewable energy research. NREL is developing new energy technologies to benefit both the environment and the economy. NREL conducts research in about 50 areas of scientific investigation, including photovoltaics, wind turbine and blade research, energy, biomass-derived fuels and chemicals, energy-efficient buildings, advanced vehicles, industrial processes, solar thermal systems, hydrogen technologies fuel cells, superconductivity, geothermal, distributed energy resources, measurement and testing of renewable energy systems, hybrid systems, basic energy research and waste-to-energy technologies. Research opportunities for undergraduate students have included appointments in all research areas at NREL.

NREL's 300-acre main campus is at the foot of South Table Mountain in Golden, Colo. The National Wind Technology Center is located "between Golden and Boulder, Colorado on Highway 93." Golden is a western suburb of Denver which has a unique feel of a small town in a highly tech metro area. NREL is located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, which offers a wide variety of outdoor activities "short distance" of the laboratory.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The largest of DOE's national laboratories, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) pioneers the development of new energy sources, technologies, and materials and the advancement of knowledge in the biological, chemical, computational, engineering, environmental, physical, and social sciences. Research opportunities for undergraduate students include projects in:

ORNL is located in East Tennessee about 7 miles from the center of Oak Ridge (population 27,000) and about 25 miles from Knoxville (metro area population of 650,000). The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is nearby along with various state parks and Tennessee Valley Authority lakes affording numerous recreational opportunities.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

PNNL is a world leader in environmental science research. The Laboratory has built an international reputation in environmental sciences through fundamental studies in chemistry, biology, computer sciences, and a wide range of other fields. This expertise has been developed through an emphasis on understanding complex systems, from molecular to global scales. Research opportunities at the Laboratory for students include appointments in atmospheric science and global change, computational sciences, experimental chemistry, marine sciences, molecular biology, environmental studies, remediation, environmental microbiology, wildlife and fisheries biology, materials research, process science and engineering, economics and political science.

Located at the confluence of the Columbia, Snake and Yakima rivers in southeastern Washington, the communities of Richland, Kennewick and Pasco (populations ~110,000) offer a multitude of recreational, cultural and historical activities for you to enjoy. Our semiarid environment has over 300 days of sunshine a year and provides many opportunities to play in the great outdoors. Hiking, biking, fishing, golfing, and boating are all popular activities around the Tri-Cities area. Riverfront parks offer miles of jogging, biking, and roller blading trails. A two-hour drive to the Cascade Mountains to the west or the Blue Mountains to the east provides snow skiing in the winter and spring and hiking and camping during the summer. To learn more about activities in and around the Tri-Cities, click here.

Sandia National Laboratory/New Mexico

Since 1949, Sandia National Laboratories has developed science-based technologies that support our national security. Today, Americans depend on Sandia’s technology solutions to solve national and global threats to peace and freedom. Sandia’s mission is to meet national needs in four key areas: a) Nuclear Weapons, b) Energy, Resources and Nonproliferation, c) Defense Systems and Assessments, and d) Homeland Security and Defense. Our Advanced Materials Laboratory, located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is offering middle and high school science teachers an opportunity to participate in state-of-the-art research.

The Advanced Materials Laboratory at Sandia National Laboratories specializes in the synthesis and characterization of new ceramic and glass materials, improving the processing methods for fabricating these materials, and evaluating their physical, optical, and electronic properties and reliability. This is achieved by combining chemistry, biology, and materials processes to develop an understanding of the physical phenomena responsible for an observed effect. The main technology thrusts are powder processing methods, electronic and optical materials development and integration, failure analysis and testing, rapid component prototyping, reactive composite processing, ceramic joining, glass technology support, 3D biological lithography, bio/inorganic interface manipulation, and ceramic packaging. Energy applications include lithium ion batteries, photovoltaics, catalytst for CO2 sequestration and conversion, and transportation fuels. Applicants should have an interest in chemistry, biology, materials science, and/or physics.