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Faculty of Science
UNB Fredericton

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Research in science

Our experts

Work side by side with some of Canada’s top scientists. We offer directed studies and dissertation based undergraduate research in all of our departments, as well as postgraduate degrees at the MSc and PhD levels.

Research team

Research institutes and centres

The Applied Statistics Centre offers assistance with survey and experiment design, data summarization and analysis of results:

  • Comprehensive assistance in the planning of data collection and its analysis. For best results, the centre should be engaged in the project before any data is collected.
  • Assistance with designing the survey or experiment that makes the most of your data, given available resources.
  • Assistance with summarizing and presenting the raw data.
  • Assistance with fitting models to data, with making predictions from the models, and with assessing the quality of the fit.
  • Assistance with drawing scientific conclusions that take full account of the uncertainties associated with the data.
  • Explanations of statistical procedures and advice on their implementation.

Consulting services are available:

  • Internally to UNB faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates with honours projects.
  • Externally to off-campus research clients in businesses, institutions, and governments.

The Canadian Rivers Institute (CRI) was founded in 2000 as a collaboration of researchers at the University of New Brunswick on both the Fredericton and Saint John campuses.

The mandate of the CRI is to develop the aquatic science needed to understand, protect and sustain water resources for the region, nation and planet.

Initially founded with two Canada Research Chairs and two additional professors, the CRI has grown to include 15 Fellows (the principles), 50+ Associates, six Canada Research Chairs, 30+ staff and over 100 graduate students with linkages to researchers across Canada and internationally.


The Centre for Environmental & Molecular Algal Research (CEMAR) is a cooperative research unit dedicated to the investigation of macroalgal and microalgal species, including cyanobacteria and harmful algae. 

Research interests include:

  • Application of molecular techniques to population-level diversity, biogeography and sea-surface reconstructions (Lawrence, Limoges, Reyes-Prieto, Saunders)
  • Comparative and evolutionary genomics of microalgae and cyanobacteria (Nedelcu, Reyes-Prieto)
  • Integrated multitrophic aquaculture (Chopin)
  • Mechanisms of environmental acclimation and population dynamics (Durnford, Nedelcu)
  • Microalgal ageing and conditional senescence (Durnford, Nedelcu)
  • Population dynamics and coevolution of viruses and algae (Lawrence)
  • Routine monitoring of macroalgal and microalgal (including cyanobacteria & harmful species) diversity (Lawrence, Limoges, Saunders)
  • Systematics, phylogenomics and evolutionary diversity of algae (Durnford, Nedelcu, Reyes-Prieto, Saunders)
  • Use of fossil microalgae as tracers of past climatic and oceanographic conditions (Limoges)

The Canadian High Arctic Ionospheric Network (CHAIN) was created in response to the fundamental need for a greater understanding of planetary environments that are affected by short and long term variability of the solar output. CHAIN is a distributed array of ground-based radio instruments located in the Canadian High Arctic. The CHAIN instruments are 25 high data-rate specialized Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Receivers and 9 High-Frequency Radars (Ionosondes). CHAIN facilitate fundamental and applied research in the following fields.

  1. Development of radio remote sensing techniques for probing the Earth's upper atmosphere
  2. Solar-Terrestrial interaction
  3. Ionospheric irregularities and structures
  4. Mitigation and modelling of Space weather effects on navigation and communication systems in the Canadian Arctic

The Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Facility (NMR) offers multinuclear NMR services with an Agilent 400 MHz spectrometer equipped with a 5 mm Automation Triple Broadband probe, and a Varian UNITY INOVA 300 MHz spectrometer equipped with a 5 mm Automation Triple Broadband probe.

Services and training are available to university researchers, government and industry in experimental design, acquisition of spectra and data interpretation and analysis. For further information, please contact the facility manager, Dr. Larry Calhoun (calhoun@unb.ca).


Scientific impact: Graduate students working at the Planetary and Space Science Centre (PASSC) don't just observe from afar. They are directly studying lunar soil and Martian meteorites affected by the impact of asteroids and comets.

Exploring the unknown: PASSC is working directly with world-renowned space agencies, including:

  • the Canadian Space Agency (CSA)
  • the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
  • the European Space Agency (ESA).

Work with the groups will see UNB directly involved with two missions to Mars in the near future.

From macro to micro: Studying impact craters has led PASSC to examine shock waves at multiple levels. Micrometeorites, about 1mm in diameter, pose a major threat to any materials outside the Earth's atmosphere. In particular, satellites and spacecraft.


The MRI Research Centre is the only material science MRI lab in Canada and the only university-based lab of its type in North America. As leaders in many aspects of material science MRI, academic and industrial research labs are adopting our ideas and techniques.

Our MRI Centre invented a family of new MRI methods which permit the visualization of structures in vivo and in a large range of materials such as:

  • concrete
  • polymers
  • composites
  • foods
  • microporous solids

The successful application of these new techniques with hardware and software innovations has opened entirely new vistas in material science research.


The Microscopy and Microanalysis Facility provides imaging and analytical services to universities, government and industry. As part of the Faculty of Science at UNB, this facility offers services and training in:

  • Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
  • Transmission electron microscopy (STEM)
  • Electron probe microanalysis,
  • Energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDS)
  • Wavelength dispersive x-ray analysis (WDS)
  • Electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS)
  • Energy-filtered TEM (EFTEM)
  • Electron diffraction
  • Low-temperature electron microscopy
  • Confocal laser scanning microscopy
  • Digital imaging
  • X-ray computed tomography (microCT)
  • Numerous specialized sample preparation techniques

The SINLAB is one of few stable isotope labs in Canada focused on addressing ecological questions. In addition to supporting research teams at the University of New Brunswick, we serve an international clientele of researchers working in terrestrial, marine and freshwater ecosystems.

SINLAB proudly:

  • Answers ecological questions for academic, public and private sectors
  • Has over 20 years of experience in elemental and isotopic analyses
  • Has clients from 27 countries and counting

Services & Studies

Stable Isotope Analysis

  • Carbon (13C)
  • Hydrogen (2H)
  • Nitrogen (15N)
  • Oxygen (18O)

Active Studies

  • Food web ecology
  • Trophic interactions
  • Animal migration
  • Biological invasions

Additional Services

  • Sample preparation
  • Acid treatment
  • Lipid extraction
  • Data interpretation

Materials Analyzed

  • Muscle
  • Liver
  • Blood
  • Scale
  • Feather
  • Hair
  • Claw
  • Teeth
  • Horn
  • Baleen

Organisms Studied

  • Fish
  • Bird
  • Terrestrial & aquatic plants
  • Mammal
  • Reptile
  • Human
  • Marine invertebrates
  • Insects
  • Terrestrial Mammals
  • Marine mammals