Usage Rates

Overview of KNI Lab User Fees
Rates below are valid beginning October 1, 2025 and are subject to change

• Fees are incurred on a pay-as-you-go basis (tools are charged by the hour or portion thereof).
• Lab users do NOT incur lab fees during days or months of non-use.
• Invoices are issued monthly.

Note: New users must submit a New User Form and attend general KNI Lab safety training before lab access is granted.

Caltech & JPL User Rates

Below is a table of direct hourly rates for lab and equipment use in the KNI Laboratory. Hourly rates are applied to an individual's actual usage in the KNI Lab. Rates do not include any applicable indirect charges, such as F&A fees. F&A (overhead) will be applied separately based on the customer's PTA type. Rates are valid beginning October 1, 2025 and are subject to change.

Tool Name	Resource Area	Hourly Rate
General Lab	See details below	$43/hr
Raith EBPG 5000+ and 5200 Electron Beam Writers	Electron Beam Lithography (EBL)	$130/hr
FEI Nova 600 Dualbeam Focused Ion Beam	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$75/hr
Oxford Cobra III-V ALE Etch System (TBA)	Deposition, Chemical Vapor	$60/hr
Oxford PECVD "2" System (TBA)	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$60/hr
Oxford FlexAl ALD/ALE System	Deposition, Chemical Vapor	$40/hr
Oxford III-V Etch System	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$40/hr
Oxford Dielectric Etch System	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$40/hr
Oxford DRIE Etch System	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$40/hr
Oxford PECVD System (legacy)	Microscopy, Focused Ion Beam (FIB)	$40/hr
Nanoscribe PPGT	2D/3D Print	$5/hr

Academic Discount on General Cleanroom Usage

A 50% discount will be applied to the General Cleanroom rate for any cleanroom usage accrued after 40 hours per calendar month. The discounted hourly rate, $21.50, is only applied to the hours that exceed 40 in a given month.

Example: A user logs 50 hours in the cleanroom during the month of October. Their invoice will be: (40 x $43) + (10 x $21.50) = $1,935

General Lab use is counted as time in the KNI cleanroom facility. It includes access to:

• Atomic Force Microscope
• Critical Point Dryer
• Electron Beam Evaporators
• Laser Interference Lithography System
• He-Ne-Ga Ion Microscope (Orion Nanofab)
• Mask Aligners
• Parylene Coater
• Profilometer
• Rapid Thermal Processor
• Scanning Electron Microscopes (Quanta, Sirion)
• Scriber Breaker
• Spectroscopic Ellipsometer
• Tube Furnaces (Wet, Dry Oxide + Annealing)
• Wafer Stepper
• Wet Chemistry Room/general supplies
• Wire Bonder
• XeF2 Silicon Etcher
• Other tools not listed in the table above

Miscellaneous Rates

• Precious Metal (gold, platinum, etc.) usage will be billed the market rate, per gram.Staff-approved full service work is $100/hr.

Full-Service Work Requests

KNI lab members and non-lab members can submit a request for full-service work performed by KNI technical staff using KNI equipment. The project will incur costs based on the actual usage of equipment (refer to rates above), as well as charges for the following:

Fees	Price
Technical Staff Effort (hourly)	$                                                    100.00
Administrative Fee (per transaction)	$                                                    100.00

To submit a request for full-service work, contact the technical staff member in charge of the equipment you are interested in using, or send an email to kni@caltech.edu. Requests will be reviewed and selected based on staff availability, agreement of scope, and turnaround timeline. A PTA must be provided in advance in order for work to begin. KNI offers no guarantees for the end product.

Note: The rates above are the direct costs. Overhead fees will be applied.

Overhead/Indirect Cost Rate

The KNI Lab charges for Non-Caltech Academic, Government, and Corporate KNI lab members are subject to Caltech's F&A (indirect/"overhead") rate. The F&A rate for fiscal year 2026 is 70%. Internal (Caltech and JPL) users will also have overhead applied to their charges. The overhead is accounted for in the back end of the internal charging process and the overhead rate is dependent on the PTA used to pay for the KNI Lab fees. If you have questions about this, please discuss with your grants manager.

External/Corporate Memberships

The KNI Lab is open to external academic, government, industry, and startup organizations. Rates for industry and startups differ from the posted rates (above) for our internal academic users. All external users will be billed for Caltech's fiscal year overhead rate.

For information on the KNI external lab membership plan, please send an email to tkimoto@caltech.edu with details regarding 1) the number of people looking to join as KNI lab members, 2) equipment needs, 3) anticipated start date, and 4) information about the company. Startup companies may qualify for limited-term reduced rates.

Additional paperwork is required, including a Facilities Use Agreement, certificate of liability insurance that meets Caltech requirements, a purchase order, and an External Affiliate appointment. This process can take up to a few weeks, and all steps must be completed before an external user is able to start in the KNI Lab.