#: locale=en ## Action ### URL LinkBehaviour_58D758D9_4ACF_85B2_41AF_99A6397ED7A0.source = http://tours.sandia.gov/mantl_info.html LinkBehaviour_58D778D9_4ACF_85B2_41B5_3E807FAF0EEA.source = http://tours.sandia.gov/support.html LinkBehaviour_58D738D9_4ACF_85B2_41D0_325FB6592889.source = http://tours.sandia.gov/tours.html LinkBehaviour_58D718D9_4ACF_85B2_41A1_454ED8C09649.source = http://tours.sandia.gov/tours.html ## Hotspot ### Tooltip HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_E2FB9C40_F1C7_23F4_419A_374C1531BD40.toolTip = A CAT with Power HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_FF66D7EE_F1C5_2C8C_41E6_6DE61B6B0FB5.toolTip = A Different Kind of Black Box HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_27AD4FB5_385E_8184_41BD_9233FC859430.toolTip = A Glimpse of the Future HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_3D2D5D55_384E_8684_41BE_DCB069FAF047.toolTip = A Measure of Power HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_E5B77A98_F1DB_6494_41E2_E95BD948B543.toolTip = A Skybox for Homes HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_168740B3_2F5D_649F_419A_8833EBDFC205.toolTip = Acquiring Residential Data HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_1437D6F2_2FC6_EC94_4191_38E61D2BD4EE.toolTip = Another Black Box HotspotMapOverlayArea_18415E7F_2BC6_8284_41BD_A36B7986CE49.toolTip = Battery Testing Lab HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_17DDC314_2F45_259C_41A1_B30BD5CCC697.toolTip = Finding Better Ways to Power Your Home HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_21C538BC_38C2_8F84_41CB_0E914AD02E50.toolTip = Fun Fact: A Place to Put Stuff HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_1DA3AD4E_117D_1D8C_415D_1CABB32A7D11.toolTip = Fun Fact: It’s Got the Power… HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_1D1E2157_117B_259C_419F_E155B7A9EEC4.toolTip = Fun Fact: Keeping it Warm and Cozy HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_23AC0E20_38C2_82BC_4185_B911E721DB3C.toolTip = Fun Fact: The Office HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_21FAA16F_38C5_BE84_41C2_97C0DEB5C144.toolTip = Fun Fact: These are the spectacular Sandia mountains. 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HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_22E23780_38BE_827C_4190_753A2D79E310.toolTip = Jump to Battery Testing Lab HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_23C8785A_38CE_8E8C_41C8_4F6EEC0254CE.toolTip = Jump to DETL Lab 1 HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_E11D98D3_F1C5_6494_41EB_AF26CF90115A.toolTip = Jump to DETL Lab 2 HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_15A1749A_2FDA_EC94_419C_75C4DFCE30A2.toolTip = Jump to Lab 1 HotspotMapOverlayArea_1F3F7F03_2BC6_827C_419D_0BD78C7F568A.toolTip = Lab 2 HotspotMapOverlayArea_1995AB02_2BC7_827C_418F_AA9BDA1187D3.toolTip = Lab 2 HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_216744A5_384E_8784_41A2_5EF887495B51.toolTip = Making a Grid That Isn’t Just a Follower HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_2368713B_38C5_9E8C_41B7_B59210DC7978.toolTip = Making the Power Flow HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_E456FC21_F1C7_23B4_41E9_3709CC5B030D.toolTip = More Secure Charging for EVs HotspotPanoramaOverlayArea_212CA5AE_3845_8184_4188_138EC4F00841.toolTip = Now That's Shocking HotspotMapOverlayArea_1884BB5F_2BC6_8284_4197_751FBB3F2C60.toolTip 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Electric vehicles (EVs) and the stations to charge them with are becoming a more common sight in our society, making them an emerging target for hackers. This station is researching how to protect such stations and their users from cybersecurity attacks. Attacks could range from stealing bank information (for stations that require a system of payment) to uploading malware to an EV while it charges. Other concerns include what issues should be considered as law enforcement and others switch to using more EVs. The research has already produced several proposed fixes for potential problems, and on-going research is looking at how to create new systems to prevent potential hackers from ever getting access in the first place.
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Hidden on the other side of this wall of wires and boxes is this large, silver box, which was used to configure battery banks from 480 to 240 volts for various test devices. However, those banks are no longer present at the facility. Now it’s basically just a big junction box. It serves as interconnection wiring from the battery simulator system to the rest of the lab, allowing the lab to use its battery simulators throughout the facility, or to provide utility power or photovoltaic power to the inverters in the facility’s battery testbed.
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How do you catch the wind? Or, when DETL is involved, how do you catch the wind efficiently? Well, in the case of this Wind Turbine Emulator, it’s done through a unique simulation that uses two different motors. One motor simulates the rotation of the wind turbine based on blade and wind dynamics, and the second one is a generator that converts mechanical power into electrical power. The goal of this set-up is to investigate how different blade angles and wind dynamics impact a wind turbine’s efficiency; or, how can wind turbines run better with better blade angles. If a blade’s angle is not ideal, the turbine won’t spin at its maximum efficiency, and thus it will produce less energy. However, changing a blade’s angle takes time, so knowing the most efficient angle for it before changing it would be useful. This emulator mimics a wind turbine’s motor dynamics as closely as possible to a real system to help ensure that the power output of the generator (driven by the motor) has the best results when testing under various conditions, which in turn helps researchers find ways to improve the overall efficiency of wind turbines. The Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWiFT) facility (another virtual tour you can visit) collaborates with DETL on this project by providing field data to use with the emulator.
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Most photovoltaic inverters and energy storage systems are grid-following, meaning they need to be connected to an actual grid (AC voltage source) to operate. With this large battery energy storage system testbed, the power electronics create their own grid so that different loads can be powered when there is a blackout.
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No, this isn’t another data breach to worry about. Actually, the data acquisition efforts here capture high-resolution and accurate data for various tests performed at DETL, as well as steady-state data for day-to-day operation and monitoring of inverters. The system is used to capture the results from power system studies and to automate a range of experiments. Automated testing is necessary to evaluate equipment for a wide range of grid conditions and control function settings. For example, testing inverters for compliance to standards such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) requires testing an inverter for each test conditions at least three to five times to ensure repeatability of the device’s ability to pass a test.
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Physical batteries capable of producing up to 100 kilowatts of power are typically large and heavy. This battery emulator makes it possible to produce that power for a range of battery chemistries without needing the actual batteries. The simulator mimics the battery’s operation under different conditions thanks to its programmable DC power supply. This gives researchers the ability to select the battery emulator system’s voltage, power, and capacity independently. While a physical battery has a set voltage range and fixed energy storage capacity, this system can emulate any battery system from 0-120 volts up to 24 kilowatts on the low voltage system and 60-1200 volts up to 100 kilowatts on the high voltage system. Additionally, the system can set any energy capacity and state of charge in a matter of seconds. Normally, to change the capacity of a battery system, you would either have to add or remove batteries from the system, and to set the state of charge you would have to discharge or charge to the desired percentage, which could take hours or days to achieve based on the capacity of the system.
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Power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) refers to incorporating physical hardware in power simulations to test commercial inverters and simulated distributions. An inverter is a device that changes direct current to alternating current (DC to AC). It’s needed to take the power from a photovoltaic or battery system and convert it into a voltage and frequency that can be used in a home. PHIL is used because it’s not possible to replicate certain grid conditions, like utility blackouts (wouldn’t that be a surprise to the neighbors?). PHIL provides a safer and more affordable way to evaluate equipment for a range of power system scenarios. This system can simulate thousands of loads (anything that consumes power, such as lights, air conditioners/heaters, refrigerators, electronics, etc.) and hundreds of generation sources with minimal hardware, allowing it to test everything from energy storage to generators to wind turbines; in short, most types of potential energy sources can be tested this way.
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So this big building is pretty much just offices. Nothing really exciting to see here, but we thought you’d like to get a glimpse of the drama that sometimes takes place in the conference room (everything looks more dramatic in black and white). Bonus fun fact: This is our Creative Services team that puts together these tours having a "dramatic" meeting.
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The DETL facility recently added this system to this lab; it's used to test what happens when there's a high voltage pulse, something like 6,000 volts; or basically, what happens when energy systems are struck by lightning. This systems tests responses to events, like the aforementioned lightning strike, that takes place miles away, and how to minimize the impact of such an event. In other words, when parts of the electric grid are overloaded with some sort of shock, this equipment helps researchers understand and discover how that impact can be minimized so only the smallest section of the grid gets shut down.
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The Energy Storage Test Pad (ESTP) provides trusted, independent, third-party testing and validation from the cell level up to 1+ megawatt AC electrical energy storage (EES) systems. In addition to long-term testing, with the capabilities of the ESTP, DETL provides pre-certification, pre-installation, and verification of EES systems. The goal is to develop advanced energy storage technologies that will increase reliability, performance, and competitiveness of electricity generation and transmission.
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There’s a lot of research that takes place in this facility, and it’s all monitored and controlled from this room. The control room houses many of the facility’s data acquisition/monitoring systems for the various test beds, and it controls all the load banks, power emulators, inverters, and other test equipment. Most of DETL’s cybersecurity work is also performed in this room, including research into protecting electric vehicles.
This is also where the facility’s inverters can be accessed through its local experimental network, and it houses the SCEPTRE system, which is used for much of this work. SCEPTRE uses network emulation and analytics (Emulytics™) to model, test, and validate control system security and process simulations. So, all in all, a lot happens here, even watching the World Cup…when it’s available.
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These boxes with the fancy blue lights are power meters. They measure power and energy output of the facility’s photovoltaic (PV) solar panels. Most of the PV panels were installed as part of an energy initiative that gives credit for the power out of the PV modules. Thus, it’s helpful to know exactly how much power is being put out from those panels.
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These camo-covered crates are a project that was being tested for the military back in 2014. They’re tactical, quiet generators designed for stealthy operation at a forward operating base (or FOB), and at one and a half megawatts of output, they could also be used for fast-chargers. However, after successful testing, arrangements couldn’t be made to return them to the military, and for a wide variety of reasons, they are still sitting here.
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These may look like just regular shipping containers, but in fact, they’re extremely large batteries. The two containers each house a 500 kilowatt per hour vanadium redox flow battery designed to be dropped in rural locations (or locations without power due to natural disaster). Each battery is equipped with a 125 kilowatt inverter (totaling a 250 kilowatt, 1 megawatt per hour energy storage system).
As a part of the Energy Storage Test Pad (ESTP), these batteries are used for testing of large-scale devices (up to 1megawatt) for long term reliability and performance of energy storage systems.
Depending on the inverters installed at the ESTP, the system can be tested grid-tied or stand-alone (controlling power flow from the battery system using the load bank located at the ESTP).
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These non-descript cabinets are the main power feed from the grid for the Energy Storage Test Pad (ESTP). Each of these cabinets houses breakers that can power devices at the ESTP, including the two 125 kilowatt inverters installed near the battery containers, as well as the load bank described in the tour.
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These red power lines serve a unique purpose. They are the connection to DETL from a DC microgrid testbed that is part of a Sandia, Kirtland Air Force Base, and Emera Energy collaboration; one of many collaborations that take place at DETL. The goal is to evaluate how to maximize and evaluate the microgrid’s stability while keeping costs at a minimum.
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These transformers are exactly what they appear to be: devices used to convert the output of an inverter into a usable voltage for the labs' needs. For example, the cabinet to the left of these transformers uses a different standard of energy, 380 volts, so these transformers change it the U.S. standard of 480 volts, thus allowing the equipment to work and run its tests.
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This Arc Fault Generator is used to research photovoltaic (PV) arc faults. If there are loose or corroded connections in PV cabling, a direct current arc (a phenomenon that causes extreme heat) may form and could cause a fire. This testbed is used to research arc behaviors and investigate new materials that will self-extinguish an arc-fault before it reaches dangerous combustion temperatures.
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This area of the laboratories was recently renovated. These inverters used to sit on carts scattered throughout the lab, but the recent renovation moved them up on to the wall. Not only does this provide better organization, but helps remove clutter from the floor of the laboratory. There are ten residential inverters in this testbed, split into groups of four (with a couple of auxiliary inverters) to simulate a neighborhood. The goal of the testbed is to investigate various interactions between inverters, and to study different products’ ability to provide different interoperability capabilities and grid-support functions since different inverters and manufacturers may all use different schemes and standards.
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This big box with the word CAT on it is a generator control panel for a 225 kilowatt diesel engine-generator. Together, the diesel engine and generator form the generator set (or genset). The genset can either tie to the grid or work as a standalone generator to power the DETL facility to aid in microgrid research.
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This black box is a programmable load bank controller. A load bank is test equipment that can simulate various sizes of load. The simulations are achieved either through discrete components (resistors, inductors, and capacitors), or through power devices. It also contains the controls to a couple of DETL’s variable load banks. The programmable controller is used to start the CAT generator, as well as to isolate the motor control center from the utility to operate as an islanded (that is, isolated or stand-alone) system.
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This environment chamber can create controlled temperatures as low as -70° F and as high as 180° F. It can also control humidity levels between 20% and 100%. Being able to control these extreme conditions is useful to study distributed energy resource failure modes, reliability, and to understand how the equipment operates in extreme conditions. Unfortunately, the chamber doesn't make its own snow, just in case you were wondering.
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This fancy looking box is a prototype inverter that is being evaluated by DETL. That’s pretty much all that can be said about it…for now…
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This is a programmable photovoltaic (PV) simulator that can emulate any sort of PV array. The simulation is useful because, even though New Mexico does have an average of 310 sunny days a year, for those days when the sun doesn’t shine, simulations don’t require real sunlight anyway. That means PV inverters can be tested any time, regardless of whether or not the weather is sunny or (in a rare Southwest occurrence) cloudy.
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This is a test configuration box; it’s used to control where power flows for a test. It can also get a source of power from different areas, which helps to ensure that as many tests as desired can be performed without major upgrades or changes to the lab circuitry. In this test setup, the configuration box can select if the DETL facility is getting power from the grid, from its grid simulators, or from the diesel generator. It can also select either half of the residential inverter testbed to be powered from either source, or the entire system.
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This little black box is similar to the one in Lab 1; it’s another programmable load bank controller used to test equipment in simulated loads of various sizes.
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This little shack of a building is the control room and workshop for this outdoor testing bed. From here, any of the testbeds are controlled, and if there’s a need for any quick fixes, the workshop provides the tools to get that work done quickly.
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This may look like a washing machine, but it’s actually a boiler system that helps keep the DETL labs warm. New Mexico may be in the Southwest, but even here it can get chilly, so this helps keep the labs cozy even on those rare, chilly days in the desert.
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This may look like your typical electric vehicle (EV) charger, and it can certainly be used for that, but this system is helping the DETL facility with some vital research. Not only is it providing insights into the cybersecurity of EV chargers, it’s also being used for researching vehicle-to-grid technologies (i.e., using a vehicle as an energy source to power your home).
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This var controller is used to test batteries for black start or micro grid operations. Black start essentially means that when a grid is down, it may not have enough power to restart, and thus may need distributed energy resources, like batteries, to provide temporary power to help it restart. This is important because power grids maintain negative magnetic fields, but any additional current can put a strain on or even destabilize those fields. This device helps test those various conditions and how stability might be maintained despite adverse conditions. However, this is a very powerful load bank and the loads created expel the energy absorbed from the power source (grid or inverter in this case) as heat, requiring very large fans to cool down the load elements in order to not burn or melt them. Therefore, the fans that cool it are extremely loud, which means it can only be run at certain times and can’t be allowed to run overnight, because it would make it hard for the neighbors to sleep.
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This workstation is what helps run PHIL; it brings hardware devices, such as solar powered panels or batteries, into a simulated environment for testing. The simulation can create an environment that ranges from a single load bank to the entire state of New Mexico’s electric grid. Every second of simulation time is equivalent to real-time, making it possible to see exactly how power devices interact with the simulated environment.
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Typically, when you hear the term skybox you might think of posh, private seating at professional sporting events. However, in this case, skybox is more about your home than a stadium. This OutBack Skybox is a single-phase photovoltaic-battery hybrid energy management system for residential applications. By charging energy storage systems from a solar array and using the management system to measure and control power flows to and from the utility, it’s possible to optimize the economic benefits from time-of-use rates.
Time-of-use rates means the cost for your electricity goes up or down depending on usage and season (i.e., noon in the middle of summer on a Saturday when you want to use your AC is probably more expensive than the middle of the night when it’s cooler and you’re asleep).
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Well, maybe it’s not quite as dramatic as that, but all it takes is a flip of a big switch for the laboratory to connect to one of the photovoltaic (PV) arrays hooked up to this facility. The PV arrays are used for various sort of energy testing related to solar power. When the system isn’t being used for testing, the lab tries to put as much clean power as possible back into the utility from its PV arrays.
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Well, maybe it’s not quite as dramatic as that, but all it takes is a flip of a big switch for the laboratory to connect to one of the photovoltaic (PV) arrays hooked up to this facility. The PV arrays are used for various sort of energy testing related to solar power. When the system isn’t being used for testing, the lab tries to put as much clean power as possible back into the utility from its PV arrays.
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Why would garage doors be a necessary feature for a battery testing laboratory? Well, the garage doors were originally used for the solar thermal programs in the late 60's-early 70's. Later, the room was used for testing batteries and energy management systems for large hybrid inverters. Now, the doors mainly make it easier to get the larger pieces of equipment into and out of the room. And no, they don’t just open them up on nice days to let more sunshine in while working in the lab.
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“Atomic batteries to power, turbines to speed.” You can almost hear Robin running through the Batmobile start-up checklist as this programmable grid simulator is powered on (listen to it roar!). Regardless of the very cool powering-up noises the machine makes, the more important point is it’s capable of mimicking everything from voltage surges to faults on the grid, and can be used as a power amplifier for power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) experiments. It can change voltage and frequency precisely and independently to investigate how various distributed energy resources (DERs) respond to a variety of grid abnormalities. Additionally, it can be used as the point of interconnect for PHIL, allowing for research into DER interactions in a larger distribution system through real-time simulations that would otherwise not be possible for physical hardware testing. Researchers can study the ability of DER equipment to “ride-through” power system faults without tripping and causing additional challenges for grid operators.
“Tripping” is when a device shuts off under abnormal conditions (like tripping a breaker, it is a shutoff of power following an abnormal event).
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…to turn the power on or off. This is basically what it looks like, one big on/off switch for the DETL facility. Don’t forget to turn the lights off when you leave…
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Yeah, this building isn’t all that exciting; it’s basically used for storage. It used to be where DETL would store some of its equipment, but it no longer has power, so now it’s basically the junk drawer of the facility.
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858 Lobby


Originally built in the late 1980s to house the Manufacturing Development Laboratory and its offices, Building 858 expanded significantly when 858EF (the MicroFab) and 858EL (MicroLab) were added as part of the MESA construction. The building houses wafer manufacturing, compound semiconductor fabrication, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) production, and electronic circuit manufacturing.
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858 Photolith Lab


Sandia maintains a clean room outside of the MicroFab area for its photolithography processes. This allows the MESA workers to develop and maintain customized processes without disruption to the manufacturing effort.


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858 SiliconFab


Building 898 is a three-story, partially pre-fabricated, facility housing offices and light laboratories. Designed as an integrated facility promoting interaction among groups via workspace blocks, the building sports a postmodern, high-tech industrial design. Its polished stone and steel and glass exterior includes curvilinear walled ribbons of windows leading to the northeast entrance, and extended wings with sun-protecting louvered windows. The soaring lobby and high ceilings create an open and empowering environment for the design work housed here.
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898 Corridor


State-of-the-art videoconferencing and stunning projection capabilities make the VIEWS Corridor a prime viewing and sharing spot for scientific computing displays. Output from the visualization tools used in Sandia's high performance computing arena can be projected in 3D. The area is a magnet for VIP visits and tours.


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898 Lobby


Building 898 is a three-story, partially pre-fabricated, facility housing offices and light laboratories. Designed as an integrated facility promoting interaction among groups via workspace blocks, the building sports a postmodern, high-tech industrial design. The soaring lobby and high ceilings create an open and empowering environment for the design work housed here.
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Gowning Room


Clean rooms environments are kept clean both by limiting the volume of particles introduced to the space and by constantly moving the air to remove particles. Workers wear protective garments to reduce the number of contaminants they introduce to the room. This changing station allows staff to put on appropriate layers prior to entering a clean room; additional changing rooms allow for full changes of clothing.
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MicroFab


The MESA Microsystems Fabrication facility is one of the most complex buildings at Sandia. It is the first in the world to combine silicon processing with fabrication of compound semiconductors under one roof. This is the heart of microsystem manufacturing, done primarily in cleanrooms.


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Microsystems and Engineering Sciences Applications (MESA)


Welcome to MESA, home of Sandia’s advanced nuclear weapons research, design and development functions, as well as integrated materials research, and the production facilities for microsystem technologies.


Focused primarily on the nuclear weapons mission, the facilities that make up MESA ultimately connect with all of Sandia's mission areas via microsystems research and applications.


After eight years of construction, MESA was completed in 2007 at a cost of $518 million. It was Sandia's largest construction project since the Labs' first permanent buildings were built in the 1940s.


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