The national laboratory is a newly emerging thing in China. It is the essential part of the national key laboratory system and represents the national innovation potential in Chinese science and technology field. The status quo and function of the national laboratory as well as its integration is discussed and the management system and the operation mechanism of American national laboratories aresummed up.Three constitutive elements and five principles for the national laboratory system are brought up. Further more, the management system and operation mechanism are studied in detail, including contract management system, director responsibility system, dynamic management for human resources, openingstrategy, constitution of innovative research teams, performance management and appraisal, competition and stimulation, cooperation and alliance, the share of scientific resource and information, production-education-research cooperation, and so on. All of these are expected to use for references for the establishment of national laboratories.