Ames National Laboratory has opened its new Advanced Magnet Facility, providing modernized space and instrumentation that will expand the U.S. Department of Energy laboratory’s capabilities in magnetic materials, energy technologies and applications focused on national security. Ames Lab is located at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.
Senior DOE officials — including Audrey Robertson, Assistant Secretary of Energy (EERE), who leads the Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI), and Kristen Ellis, Associate Principal Deputy Under Secretary for the Office of the Under Secretary for Science — joined Ames Laboratory Director Karl Mueller, Iowa State University President David Cook, and regional partners for the ribbon‑cutting ceremony.
Speakers emphasized the facility’s role in strengthening domestic supply chains and advancing next‑generation materials innovation together with industry. Shown above at the ceremonial opening are, left to right, Dan Culhane, President, Ames Regional Economic Alliance; David J. Cook, President, Iowa State University; Karl Mueller, Director, Ames National Laboratory; Audrey Robertson, Assistant Secretary of Energy (EERE), Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI)
Ahead of the ceremony, DOE guests toured several research areas showcasing Ames National Laboratory’s strengths in critical materials, automated chemistry, and AI‑enabled discovery. The lab is also advancing AI for research through the DOE’s Genesis Mission, a historic national effort to transform American science and innovation through the power of AI, strengthening the nation’s technological leadership and global competitiveness.
“We are delighted to welcome our leadership from the Department of Energy to Ames National Laboratory and to share the exciting work happening across our campus,” said Ames Lab Director Karl Mueller. “The opening of the Advanced Magnet Facility represents a major step forward for our mission — strengthening the nation’s capabilities in magnet science and critical materials, and the technologies that rely on them.”
”The newly renovated Advanced Magnet Facility underscores the scientific and research excellence of our national laboratories,” said DOE Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson. “It will enable cutting-edge work to establish new magnetic materials and components for use across transportation and industry, while supporting American manufacturing innovation.”
The Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub is an Energy Innovation Hub led by DOE’s Ames National Laboratory with support from CMEI’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office. CMI seeks ways to accelerate the development of critical material technologies and enhance the innovation pipeline for U.S. supply chains by accelerating research, educating a diverse workforce, and creating de-risked, commercial-ready technologies in partnership with American industry.
CMEI’s Transportation Technologies Office also supports Ames Lab’s technological research and development focusing on the creation of novel magnetic materials for advanced motor designs for transportation and the recycling and reusing of motor materials.
The lab is supported by the DOE’s Office of Science which is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States. See https://energy.gov/science.
