LCN

Name

LCN

Legal name

The London Centre for Nanotechnology

Website

https://london-nano.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The London Centre for Nanotechnology is a joint-venture research centre between UCL, Imperial College London, and King's College London that operates state-of-the-art cleanroom, AFM, and quantum-science facilities for ~1,040 researchers across three London campuses, serving academic, industry, and government partners in healthcare, ICT, and sustainability.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nanotechnology Research Services

NAICS

Research and Development in Nanotechnology (541713), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845)

akta.pro primary industry

Quantum Standards, Testbeds & Open Research Infrastructure (HDAGAMAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Quantum Sensing, Metrology & Imaging Research (HDAGAMAJ), Quantum Materials, Qubits & Device Physics Research (HDAGAMAA), Comprehensive Doctoral Research Universities (Multi-Disciplinary) (EDAHABAA)

Keywords

• Nanotechnology research services
• Contract research collaboration
• Quantum diagnostics technology
• Nanofabrication cleanroom facilities
• Academic spin-out commercialisation

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Research grants and funding: LCN operates as an academic research institution funded primarily through government research councils including EPSRC, and industry partnerships
2. PhD programmes and studentships: Fully funded studentships managed through UCL Doctoral School, including EPSRC Landscape Award studentships and UCL-CSC Joint Research Scholarships
3. Equipment access and contract research: Access to scientific equipment provided to academic and industrial partners on contract or collaboration basis
4. Spin-out companies: Commercialisation of research through creation of spin-out companies applying nanoscience to real-world challenges

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

The London Centre for Nanotechnology is a multidisciplinary research enterprise providing access to nanofabrication, characterisation, and quantum device facilities across UCL, Imperial College London, and King's College London. It delivers contract research services, collaborative R&D with industry, fully funded PhD studentships, and commercialises nanotechnology through spin-out companies. Research is structured around three challenge areas: Planetcare (energy and environment), ICT (quantum and sustainable electronics), and Healthcare (nanomedicine, diagnostics, and therapeutics).

Product overview

The London Centre for Nanotechnology (LCN) is a UK-based multidisciplinary research enterprise operating at the forefront of nanoscience and nanotechnology. Rather than a single commercial product, LCN offers a suite of research facilities and services including the LCN Cleanroom Facility at UCL, specialized equipment at King's College London (Strand Research Facility, Centre for Ultrastructural Imaging, London Metallomics Facility, Nikon Imaging Centre, Spatial Biology Facility), and the Quantum Science and Device Facility at Imperial College. The center also supports commercialization through its Spin-out Portfolio of companies applying nanotechnology to healthcare, energy, advanced materials, and communications. LCN's research is organized around three challenge areas: Planetcare (energy transition, environmental monitoring, sustainable nanoscience), ICT (quantum technologies, sustainable electronics, neuromorphic computing), and Healthcare (diagnostics, therapeutics, tissue engineering).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• LCN Cleanroom Facility UCL's nanofabrication cleanroom comprising three laboratories: 250 m² ISO Class 6 space with ISO Class 5 zones for optical and electron beam lithography, 40 m² ISO Class 7 space hosting electron and focused ion beam systems, and a 27 m² back-end lab. Available to academic and industrial partners on a contract or collaboration basis.
• Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) Facility One of the largest AFM facilities in the UK with twelve instruments available to academic and industrial partners on a contract or collaboration basis for nanoscale characterisation.
• Quantum Science and Device Facility (QSDF) Imperial's state-of-the-art facility for studying quantum devices, located at Imperial College London's South Kensington and White City campuses.
• LCN Equipment at King's College London Equipment and facilities housed at King's College London for nanoscale research, including the Strand Research Facility, Centre for Ultrastructural Imaging, London Metallomics Facility, Nikon Imaging Centre, and Spatial Biology Facility.
• LCN Spin-out Portfolio Spin-out companies commercialising LCN research in areas including quantum computing (Quantum Motion, £42M raised), gas sensors (M*etasenz*), quantum imaging for cancer detection (Digistain, EntangleCam), and other applications. Some spin-outs have been acquired by global industry leaders.
• PhD Studentships and Doctoral Training Fully funded PhD programmes managed through UCL Doctoral School, including EPSRC Landscape Award studentships, UCL-CSC Joint Research Scholarships, and industry-sponsored Centre for Doctoral Training studentships (e.g., Advanced Characterisation of Materials with industry sponsors such as Rolls Royce and Cameca). Provides talent pipeline into the UK nanotechnology research base.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 1,000 fold improvement in analytic sensitivity with quantum-enhanced nanodiamond diagnostic tests compared to conventional lateral flow tests
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• IBM Quantum: Large established commercial player in quantum hardware and software with university-grade research programmes. Wider-scope incumbent than LCN but operates in overlapping quantum computing and sensing disciplines that LCN also targets through partners like Quantum Motion.
• National Physical Laboratory (NPL): UK's national metrology institute operating measurement and standards infrastructure across quantum, materials, and biomedical sensing. A broader incumbent in the same UK quantum research ecosystem that LCN operates within (LCN members have received NPL awards).

Direct peers

• Centre for Nanoscience et Nanotechnologies (C2N, Université Paris-Saclay/CNRS): French national research centre combining nanoscience and nanotechnologies across physics, materials and devices. Directly comparable in mission, instrumentation scope, and quantum/biomedical research portfolio to LCN.
• Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute (UBC): University of British Columbia institute focused on quantum materials, devices and sensors with shared nanofabrication facilities. Comparable to LCN's quantum materials and quantum sensing research combined with shared nanofabrication infrastructure.
• University of Oxford Quantum Hub (QCS Hub): One of the UK Quantum Technology Hubs in the same £160M National Quantum Technologies Programme alongside Q-BIOMED in which LCN participates. Directly comparable as UK-based university-led quantum research consortium with similar funding source and policy positioning.
• Kavli Nanoscience Institute (Caltech): Caltech's nanofabrication and characterisation facility offering shared cleanroom and instrumentation to academic and industry researchers. Comparable as a university-anchored open-access nanotechnology infrastructure with strong quantum/biophysics overlap.
• California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI, UCLA): UCLA research institute operating shared nanofabrication, microscopy and characterisation facilities with industry partnership and spin-out programmes — a near-functional analog to LCN's metropolitan, multi-stakeholder research centre model.
• Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics: German research institute conducting frontier research on quantum optics, sensors and quantum information technologies. Directly comparable to LCN's quantum science and device focus area, particularly around sensing and metrology.
• Walter Schottky Institute (TU Munich): TU Munich research institute covering semiconductor physics, quantum devices and nanostructures. Comparable to LCN's combination of nanoelectronics, quantum materials research, and industrial partnership activity.
• MIT.nano (MIT): A university-operated nanofabrication and characterisation facility at MIT combining cleanrooms, imaging, and characterisation tools. Highly comparable to LCN's role as a multi-institution shared research infrastructure for nanoscience.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LondonNanotech
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCRTn9koNjWptZzkvlYeWIHg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/london-centre-for-nanotechnology

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LCN