Why do researchers, who typically have affiliations with their home academic departments at UC San Diego, UC Irvine or UC Riverside, choose to work with CalIT2? The specific reasons are as varied as the researchers themselves.

However, CalIT2 faculty affiliates often cite:

• Use of an array of core shared facilities (listed below) that are prohibitively expensive for an individual lab to fund by itself; these facilities lower the barrier for researchers to access state-of-the-art tools to advance their studies
• Knowledgeable professional support in areas including operation of core facilities, fabrication, web design, grant writing, etc. (see below)
• An interdisciplinary environment that creates opportunities to collaborate and gain new perspectives on research topics
• A solution-oriented business office, which processes grants and awards efficiently, including setting up agreements, preparing budgets, and handling all post-award administration, from assignment and setup of accounts to closeout
• Other perks, which can include publicity (such as press release and feature article writing of faculty research and awards) and support with areas including human resources, purchasing, and facility space access, assignments and rental.