National Laboratory of the Rockies Launches "Self-Driving Laboratories" (Text Version)

This is the text version of a video showcasing automated laboratory experimentation powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics at NLR.

Led by Joey Luther, a senior research fellow in NLR's materials science division, and Frederick Baddour, a senior chemist in NLR's bioenergy and bioeconomy program, the laboratory has begun developing an automated manufacturing process for two technologies: thin-film semiconductors and catalytic nanomaterials.

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National Laboratory of the Rockies Launches "Self-Driving Laboratories"

A robotic arm drops down and hovers over a tray of beakers.

Scientists at National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) are using artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics to speed up routine experimentation.

The shot changes to a copper reactor flow plate. Blue liquid moves through a tube and then flows into a tube off-screen.

In one case study, they reimagined a flow chemistry setup that could be accomplished without human intervention.

The video changes to an experiment where a robotic arm lifts a sample onto a plate, drops blue fluid onto the sample, and then spins the sample.

In another case study, they used robotics to automate semiconductor film manufacturing.

AI can help robotics perform repetitive tasks without human intervention, fatigue, or variation.

The video changes to a close-up of the robotic arm dispensing a different number of blue droplets into several beakers.

NLR scientists say it may be possible to form a "closed loop" where humans point to an exploratory realm and computers perform their own experiments.

The video changes to a different perspective of the robotic arm dispensing blue droplets.

That would allow AI to become a "research co-pilot," helping AI systems move beyond their training data toward scientific breakthroughs.

Learn more about NLR's "self-driving laboratories" by visiting https://www.nlr.gov/materials-science/autonomous-experimentation.

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