Research at RPI

Gifts in support of these critically important research areas will allow our faculty and students to advance the vision of RPI in changing the world.

GIVE TO RESEARCH

Over the past decade, the research portfolio at RPI has been completely transformed. As a top-tier technological research university, RPI has invested in strategic partnerships, talented researchers, and sophisticated research platforms to address the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century.

Today, the RPI research enterprise comprises $104 million in annual research expenditures, supports a diverse range of research centers and platforms, and ensures the advancement of interdisciplinary research in six key areas:

  • Future Computation
  • Microelectronics
  • Life Sciences and Biotechnology
  • Materials and Manufacturing
  • Energy, Environment and Sustainability
  • Fundamental Knowledge

Institute-Wide Research Platforms

Our five world-class research platforms push the boundaries of individual disciplines:

Center For Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies

A collaborative research facility where more than 200 scientists and engineers perform fundamental, applied, and translational research to address human health and mitigate disease.

CCI

We serve a vital resource for a broad range of Rensselaer researchers and partners from industry, academe, and government, providing the technical capability and expertise to perform low-cost, high-performance cluster computing.

Center for Materials, Devices, and Integrated Systems (CMDIS)

Our Center promotes next-generation development of electronic and optical devices, manufacturing and robotics, integrated biomaterial devices, energy harvesting and storage, and nanostructured composite materials, among other leading-edge technologies.

RPI EMPAC

Through its world-class studios and research facilities, this unique Center enables artists, researchers, and audiences to come together under one roof to inquire, develop, and experience the ever-changing relationships among our senses, technology, and the world.

High Performance Computers

This Center enables new lines of research in web science, high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, data science, and predictive analytics and links them to applications in a vast range of areas, from cybersecurity to health and environmental preservation.

Institute-Wide Centers

Learn more about each of our research centers and the global challenges they seek to address.

Center for Architecture Science and Ecology (CASE)

Center for Architecture Science and Ecology (CASE)

An academic and professional collaboration at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute advancing the built environment through research, education, and built projects.

Center for Future Energy Systems (CFES)

We are a locus of research at RPI, partnering with industry, government, and academic institutions to accelerate renewable energy research, move technologies from the laboratory to the marketplace, and, ultimately, build and sustain economic value.

Center for Modeling, Simulation and Imaging in Medicine (CEMSIM)

Our Center is developing advanced modeling, simulation, and imaging technology to rapidly translate biomedical research from the lab to clinical practice in highly collaborative, bench-to-bedside approaches.

Center for Smart Convergent Manufacturing Systems (CSCMS)

Originally established as a NY State-designated Center for Advanced Technology in 2025, the Center assists client companies with applied manufacturing R&D to help them meet specific business objectives so that they can grow and create jobs.

Darrin Fresh Water Institute (DFWI)

This multidisciplinary environmental research center is dedicated to understanding the structure and function of aquatic, terrestrial, and atmospheric systems, with a primary focus on studying the impact of human activities on these interconnected environments.

Fashion Innovation Center

The Fashion Innovation Center (FIC) is a consortium to nurture a New York State sustainable fashion industry. Photo credit: Gale Zucker for the Hudson Valley Textile Project

Rensselaer Astrobiology Research and Education Center (RARE)

Rensselaer Astrobiology Research and Education Center (RARE)

This Center provides a platform for astrobiologists to collaborate on research that spans from the origin and composition of organic compounds in space and the emergence of life on Earth, to the study of Earth’s extreme ecosystems and the potential for life beyond our planet.

Scientific Computation Research Center (SCOREC)

Scientific Computation Research Center (SCOREC)

SCOREC researchers develop reliable simulation technologies for engineers, scientists, medical professionals, and other practitioners to enable them to employ, appraise, and evaluate the behavior of mechanical, chemical, and biological systems of interest.