SEMS Research Facilities
The School benefits from an excellent range of facilities and resources, these include:
Comprehensive computing facilities: a SRIF-funded high performance computing cluster, several highperformance PC clusters and parallel SGI computer clusters, and an extensive network of Linux and UNIX workstations.
Wind tunnel facilities: eight low-speed wind tunnels, a very low turbulence wind tunnel, three high-speed wind tunnels, computer-based flow control system with high-speed real-time data acquisition and processing system, colour and high-focused Schlieren systems, interactive aerodynamic simulator, PIV system.
Experimental thermofluids engineering facilities: heat transfer and condensation rigs, IC-engine test beds and other combustion rigs, laser doppler anemometry, electron microscopy gas/particulate-sampling and analysis facilities.
Electrospray laboratories created with the support of the UK Joint Research Councils. The facilities include a wide range of instrumentation including specialist equipment of a mass spectrometer capable of resolving high m/z particles up to 40,000, and sub microsecond resolution high speed imaging.
A cell and tissue engineering suite with separate stem cell laboratory funded by Wolfson grant: this houses cell culture labs, a molecular biology unit with quantitative rtPCR capability, confocal microscopy, FTIR and a radio-isotope labelling facility.
A general purpose laboratory: incorporates advanced mechanical test machines and standard biochemical/cell biology analysis equipment.
The latest electron microscopes and a range of modern materials characterisation facilities including: FTIR and FT-Raman spectroscopy, x-ray fluorescence (XRF), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, x-ray diffractometer
(XRD),calorimetric (DTA, DSC) and thermomechanical (DMA, rheometer) techniques, analytical and computational facilities and image analysis, materials processing and fabrication, heat treatment equipment and dielectric and electrical characterisation.
A grant from the Royal Society/Wolfson is creating new laboratories to support functional materials research. The laboratories will hold the latest processing and characterisation equipment for organic solar cells.
The NanoVision Centre enhances the experimental nanomechanics and high resolution imaging capabilities of the School. The centre houses two high resolution environmental scanning electron microscopes (SEM) one with an additional focused ion beam, a custom built atomic force microscope and a cryo-sample preparation stage.
Both SEMs incorporate the latest STEM technology and are supported by transmission electron microscopy.
Our scanning probe laboratory contains two low drift, high stability closed-loop Scanning Probe Microscopes (SPM).