Our Mission

DOE’s Office of Science has a mission to deliver scientific discoveries and major scientific tools to transform our understanding of nature and advance the energy, economic, and national security of the United States. We are the nation’s largest federal sponsor of basic research in the physical sciences and are a major supporter of research in such key scientific fields as physics, materials science, computing, and chemistry. We are also the lead federal agency supporting fundamental scientific research related to energy.

To keep America in the forefront of discovery and innovation, we sponsor research at hundreds of universities, national laboratories, and other institutions across the country. We also build and maintain a vitally important array of large-scale scientific facilities at the DOE national laboratories, which are used by thousands of researchers every year.

About the Office of Science

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The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Science is the nation’s largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences, the steward of 10 DOE national laboratories, and the lead federal agency supporting fundamental research for energy production and security. Our job is to keep America at the forefront of discovery. This video is an overview of the Office of Science’s mission, people, and resources.
Video courtesy of DOE's Office of Science

Science Headlines

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Bringing Supercomputers and Experiments Together to Accelerate Discoveries
Argonne’s Nexus effort is helping to advance the development of an integrated research infrastructure.
Scientists Watch Gas-Phase Ions Form and Transform in Real Time
The results could lead to a better understanding of reactions with vital roles in chemistry and biology.
NREL and Partners Receive Funding To Decipher Microbial Behavior in Bioreactors at Scale
The new study will explore why promising biomanufacturing fermentation processes that excel in the lab may fail on an industrial scale.
Researchers at Fermilab Use Electron Beams to Eradicate Forever Chemicals in Water
Fermi Lab and 3M scientists successfully demonstrated that an electron beam can destroy the two most common types of PFAS in water — PFOA and PFOS.

University and Stakeholder News

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Newly Developed Material Gulps Down Hydrogen, Spits it Out, Protects Fusion Reactor Walls
Engineers have used a spray coating technology to produce a new workhorse material that can withstand the harsh conditions inside a fusion reactor.
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US Particle Physics Panel Recommends SURF for Future Expansion, Extended Neutrino and Dark Matter Research
An international panel of physicists that convenes once each decade is recommending new and expanded projects at SURF.
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Rice Scientists Pull Off Quantum Coup
The alloy is the 1st known material in which 3D crystal structure and strong quantum interactions frustrate electron movements and lock them in place.
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MSU Researcher Talks About Sending Seeds Into Space and Improving Plant Resilience
Federica Brandizzi is a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University and an MSU Research Foundation Professor.
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Recently Featured Articles

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Science Highlights

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Dept. of Energy Office of Science delivers scientific discoveries, tools for the nation via programs in Advanced Scientific Computing Research; Basic Energy Sciences; Biological & Environmental Research; Fusion Energy Sciences; High Energy Physics; Nuclear Physics. Also supports Accelerator Research; Isotope Research; Small Business Innovation Research and Technology Transfer; 5 national quantum centers; 2 energy innovation hubs. Stewards 10 DOE national labs. 100-plus Nobel Prizes, $8.1 billion budget.

The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

Image courtesy of the Department of Energy Office of Science