Self-guided tour
Ground floor
The Library has four floors. The ground floor is devoted to circulation and enquiry services provided from the Service Desk, as well as housing the reference collection and current journals display. In addition, the ground floor accommodates workstations providing access to the library catalogues and networked information services, a networked printer, and a new acquisitions display area.
Access to the other floors is by the central lift or the two stairwells to the west and east sides of the building. This tour continues on the second floor (top floor).
Second floor
The second floor houses the first half of the main book collection, with the sequence starting between the two stairwells. Books are classified using the Library of Congress scheme. The stock on this floor covers general science, computer science and some mathematics (algebra, probability and statistics, and analysis). This floor also provides (to the right of the lift when facing the front of the building) excellent views of the rest of the site including the grass roof of the central core building.
First floor
Descending to the first floor, the main book collection continues, with the sequence again starting between the two stairwells. The sequence begins with the remainder of the mathematics stock (geometry and mechanics), before continuing through astronomy, physics, materials science, and engineering. The thesis collection is also to be found on this floor, immediately following the end of the main book sequence.
Overlooking the Library entrance and the Newton Institute building is the Stephen Hawking Archive display. This is a permanent exhibition of a small number of the items deposited with Cambridge University Library by Professor Hawking for preservation for future generations.
Lower-ground floor
The lower-ground floor provides well over half of the total shelving capacity of the Library, as the building extends beyond the footprint of the upper floors.
Journals are arranged alphabetically by title within their basic Library of Congress subject divisions: Q for general science, QA for mathematics, QB astronomy, and so on. The sequence starts in the stacks on the right hand side of the room, continues along the left hand side stacks, works its way along the mobile shelving units against the far wall, and then back along the mobile units in the centre of the room.
This floor also houses two small study rooms (which may be booked in advance at the Service Desk) and the majority of the Library's public workstations. Despite being below ground level, ample natural light enters this floor at the right-hand side from the landscaped valley in which the central core building sits.