The Institute for Molecular and Nanoscale Innovation (IMNI) was founded in 2007 to coordinate Brown’s research and education in nanoscience, molecular science, and materials science. It now has 62 faculty participants across the Brown campus and a professional staff for proposal development, grant management, and operation of major core research facilities. 

IMNI is organized into three research clusters: the Center for Advanced Materials (CAMR), the Center for Nanoscience and Soft Matter (CNSSM), and the NanoHealth Initiative. We are a research-oriented Institute that catalyzes and administers complex multi-investigator and block grants, and serves as the outward face and point of contact between Brown and the international materials science and nanotechnology community. IMNI currently manages eight multi-investigator grants or funded corporate partnerships and operates four major core research facilities for material fabrication and characterization. Our educational activities currently focus on developing and advertising multidisciplinary courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels, hosting functions to enrich the graduate student experience, and providing undergraduate summer research opportunities.