This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article relies excessively on references to primary sources. Please improve this article by adding secondary or tertiary sources. Find sources: "International Institute for Nanotechnology" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (October 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article contains promotional content. Please help improve it by removing promotional language and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from a neutral point of view. (March 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN) was established by Northwestern University in 2000.^[1] It was the first institute of its kind in the United States and is one of the premier nanoscience research centers in the world.^[2] Today, the IIN represents and unites more than $1 billion in nanotechnology research, educational programs, and supporting infrastructure.^[3]

IIN faculty includes 20 members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. One of Northwestern University's largest collaborative efforts, IIN brings together more than 240 chemists, engineers, biologists, physicians, and business experts, to focus on society's most perplexing problems. But the IIN's influence extends far beyond Northwestern's campus.^[4] It has developed collaborative partnerships with academic institutions in 30 countries, as well as with more than a dozen U.S. federal agencies and 100 countries.^[5]

Since its inception, more than 2,000 products and systems have been commercialized worldwide. Twenty-three start-up companies have been launched based upon IIN research, and they have attracted over $1 billion in venture capital funding.^[6] The IIN is changing the face of research in fields from medical diagnostics to materials science.^[7] The IIN drives innovation-based business formation, employment and economic growth.^[8]

The role of the institute is to support meaningful efforts in nanotechnology, house state-of-the-art nanomaterials characterization facilities, and nucleate individual and group efforts aimed at addressing and solving key problems in nanotechnology. The IIN positions Northwestern University and its partners in academia, industry, and national labs as leaders in this exciting field.^[9]

Research is organized into the following eight pillars, each focused on a critical societal issue:^[10]

• NanoMedicine
• NanoOncology
• Molecular Electronics
• NanoEnabled Energy Solutions
• Environmental Nanotechnology
• NanoEnabled Solutions for Food and Water
• Nanotechnology for Security and Defense
• NanoEducation

IIN faculty are drawn from 32 departments and four schools at Northwestern:^[11]

The IIN Executive Council is a group of business people, led by David Kabiller, committed to advocating for nanotechnology research and education; promoting the IIN as a high-impact philanthropic opportunity; and advising IIN leadership on philanthropy, marketing, and bringing technology from the laboratory to market.^[12]

Nanomedicine is an emerging field that focuses on using nanotechnology to impact the field of medicine. Powerful new ways of studying, diagnosing, and treating diseases have been the dividends of basic research in the field of nanoscience. Indeed, this field and the materials devices that derive from it, have a chance to revolutionize medicine as we currently know it.

Through a generous donation from entrepreneur David Kabiller, the IIN established the $250,000 Kabiller Prize in Nanoscience and Nanomedicine and the $10,000 Kabiller Young Investigator Award in Nanoscience and Nanomedicine.^[13] Every other year, the Kabiller Prize recognizes individuals who have made a career-long, significant impact in the field of nanotechnology applied to medicine and biology. The Kabiller Young Investigator Award recognizes individuals who have made breaking discoveries within the last few years in the same area that have the potential to make a lasting impact.

The IIN seeks to develop and nurture the scientists, engineers, technicians, and teachers of tomorrow; enrich the academic environment; and inform and engage the public through the following programs:^[14]

• Undergraduate Research
• Ryan Graduate Fellowships
• IIN Postdoctoral Fellowships
• Worldwide Nanotechnology Town Halls
• Annual international IIN Symposium
• Nano Boot Camp for Clinicians
• All Scout Nano Day
• Frontiers in Nanotechnology Seminar Series

The IIN has created a new kind of research coalition with a large precompetitive nanoscale science and engineering platform for developing applications, demonstrating manufacturability and training skilled researchers.^[15]

The IIN works on joint research initiatives with corporations including:^[16]

This program links institute researchers with venture capital experts and has resulted in the formation the 23 companies below, which have collectively raised over $1 billion in financing:^[17]