Engineering Research Buildings & Technology

Harold frank hall

Harold Frank Hall (HFH) is a 60,000 sf building that houses primarily offices and labs of the Computer Science and Electrical and Computer Engineering departments. The Dean of the College of Engineering and Dean's administrative staff offices are located on the first floor in a ground-level wing. The building was named in honor of Diana and Harold Frank, an accomplished engineer and supporter of UCSB Engineering, in 2006.

Engineering II Building

Engineering II is an 84,000 sf facility that houses several classrooms, lab spaces, and offices for the departments of Materials, Mechanical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering. Within Engineering II there are several state-of-the-art instrumentation laboratories. 

Engineering Science Building

The Engineering Science Building (ESB) is a 55,000 sf facility with 16 laboratories, computer labs, office space, an access grid, and facilities for 160 graduate students and researchers. ESB research facilities and labs include:

• UCSB Nanofabrication Facility - 12,700 sf cleanroom facility offering a spectrum of tools for research, including lithography, vacuum deposition, dry etch, wet processing, thermal processing, packaging, inspection, test, and characterization  Click here to see how the state-of-the-art facility will play a key role in a federally sponsored regional innovation hub designed to bolster microelectronic technology developed and fabricated in the United States. 

Elings Hall / California Nanosystems Institute

Elings Hall is a 61,000 sf building that houses the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), the AlloSphere Research Facility, classrooms, offices, labs, and the Media Arts & Technology graduate program. The building was named in honor of Betty Elings Wells and Virgil Elings, professor emeritus of physics and supporter of UCSB Engineering, in 2007. 

CNSI research facilities and labs:

• Biological Nanostructures Lab
• Nanostructures Cleanroom Facilities
• Microfluidics Lab
• AlloSphere Research Facility
• Microscopy & Microanalysis Facility
• Spectroscopy Facility
• X-ray Diffraction Facility
• High Performance Computing

Materials Research Laboratory

Recognized as one of the top materials research facilities in the world, the Materials Research Laboratory (MRL) is a National Science Foundation Materials Research Science & Engineering Center (NSF MRSEC), Award No. DMR05-20415.

MRL shared experimental lab facilities:

• TEMPO Facility, extensive analytical instrumentation for materials characterization
• High Performance Computing Facility, as part of the UCSB Center for Scientific Computing
• Energy Research Facility
• Polymer Characterization Facility
• Spectroscopy Facility
• X-ray Facility
• Microscopy & Microanalysis Facility
• Terahertz Facility, as part of the Institute of Terahertz Science and Technology

Phelps Hall

Phelps Hall is campus-shared classroom and office space. It houses offices for the College of Engineering marketing and development staff, the Technology Management Program, and engineering research centers and institutes. 

Bioengineering Building

The state-of-the-art Bioengineering Building opened in Ocotber 2017. Located just north of the main campus library, the 48,000 sf building was designed to LEED Silver standards and features classroom space, offices, and labs. The building houses faculty from several different departments across campus, their research laboratories and personnel, as well as the Center for Bioengineering and the Institute of Collaborative Biotechnologies (ICB).

HENLEY HALL

Henley Hall is a 49,900 GSF building that is home to UC Santa Barbara’s Institute for Energy Efficiency (IEE). The 50,000-square foot structure was completed in September 2020 and provides critical state-of-the-art lab and teaching space. The three-story building features 18 wet and dry labs, collaborative break-out space, conference rooms, a 124-seat lecture hall, 34 offices for faculty and postdoctoral researchers and various administrative offices. 

For more information, or to book one of the four available conference rooms, click here. 

Instrumentation & Technology

UCSB Shared Instrumentation Network

Created in collaboration with the UCSB Office of Research, Sustainability Office, and the MRL, the Shared Instrumentation Network bridges all departments on campus to provide interdisciplinary collaboration. The Shared Instrumentation website includes a directory of instrumentation and facilities, searchable by availability to campus, industry, and national lab users.

How to Use UCSB Facilities

Many shared instruments on the UCSB campus are available for use via recharge to off-campus users. UCSB's labs and facilities are all independently managed, and each department has unique procedures for instrument access, training, scheduling, and billing. Access for external users are always at the discretion of the individual Principal Investigator, the facility, or the department. Learn more about how to get started and who to contact about shared instrumentation and facilities: industry.ucsb.edu/facilities