If you've registered as a nanoFAB user, you likely want to use some equipment. Before you can do this, you will need to be trained by a staff member. The number of training sessions required to become proficient and receive a final sign-off vary amongst the equipment, and will also be impacted by your experience in working with such equipment.
In most cases, training on equipment will expire after a certain period of inactivity. If you've lapsed, and your status has been set back to trainee, you will need to request a training session in order to be signed off on the tool and elevated back to user status.
In some cases, large groups will perform some introductory training within the group and only involve a nanoFAB staff member when it is time to perform the final sign-off. If you are unsure if this applies to you, it is always best to ask the staff for clarification.
Step-by-step guide
All training requests must be submitted through LMACS.
- If you haven't already done so - Create an LMACS account
- Using the Requests system in LMACS, submit a new request describing your training needs in as much detail as possible. This can be as simple as “I need SEM training” or as complex as a multi-step process flow. Do not worry if you are unsure which specific equipment you will need: our staff can work with you to determine which tools are best suited to your application.
- Once your request has been reviewed, a nanoFAB staff member will contact you for further dialogue or to schedule your training session(s).
- If you are requesting access to equipment in an area that you previously did not have access to (ie. the cleanroom), you may be required to addend a safety orientation.
Once you have satisfied the training requirements on a specific piece of equipment, your user level will be graduated from “trainee” to “user”. This will allow unsupervised use of specific equipment during normal business hours.
Please note that, in the interest of efficiency for both our user community and nanoFAB staff, we only offer training that is required to complete current work. That is, we do not provide “dummy” training sessions using “standard” specimens; instead, users are expected to use their actual specimens during training sessions. This allows our staff to tailor training to each user’s specific application and minimizes the need for retraining in future.