 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) has been a leader in science and engineering research for more than 70 years. Located on a 200-acre site in the hills above UC Berkeley’s campus, and overlooking the San Francisco Bay, LBNL holds the distinction of being the oldest of the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Laboratories. LBNL is managed by the University of California , operating with an annual budget of more than $500 million (FY 2004) and a staff of about 3,800 employees, including more than 500 students.
LBNL was founded in 1931 by Ernest Orlando Lawrence, winner of the 1939 Nobel Prize in Physics for his invention of the cyclotron, a circular particle accelerator that opened the door to high-energy physics. It was Lawrence ’s belief that scientific research is best done through teams of individuals with different fields of expertise, working together. His teamwork concept is an LBNL legacy that has yielded rich dividends in basic knowledge and applied technology, and a profusion of awards. Associated with LBNL are 11 Nobel laureates, 59 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 19 members of the National Academy of Engineering, and three members of the Institute of Medicine.
LBNL conducts unclassified research across a wide range of scientific disciplines, with key efforts in fundamental studies of the universe, quantitative biology, nanoscience, new energy systems and environmental solutions, and the use of integrated computing as a tool for discovery. It is organized into 17 scientific divisions and hosts four DOE national user facilities. These facilities include the Joint Genome Institute, the National Energy Research Supercomputing Center, the Advanced Light Source, and the Molecular Foundry.
LBNL is unique among the DOE national laboratories in that it began on the university campus, and currently, more than 250 principal investigators (PIs) at LBNL are full-time professors at UCB. That association has deeply shaped LBNL’s policies, procedures, and culture. There is open access between the two institutions, and constraints on IP, procurement, security, and use are minimal, providing LBNL with the most transparent research environment in the national laboratory system. All LBNL employees are employees of the University of California. |
