CALL FOR PROPOSALS
SEPTEMBER 2008

Proceed to the following links for details on proposal submission, proposal review, and site access.

• PROPOSAL FORMS
• PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS  including REVISED TIPS ON PROPOSAL WRITING
• PROPOSAL REVIEW AND BEAM TIME ALLOCATION
• OBTAINING SITE ACCESS

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The NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR) offers neutron scattering and chemical analysis instruments to all qualified users.

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The next deadline for receipt of NEW and CONTINUATION proposals is Monday, November 3, 2008

Note that the deadline for continuation proposals is the same as for new proposals. Continuation proposals must be accompanied by an experimental report, and are critically reviewed by the Beam Time Allocation Committee (BTAC). A continuation proposal should be submitted only to complete work clearly laid out in the original proposal. Extensions of prior work to new systems or in new directions should be requested through a new proposal. If a proposal submitted as a continuation is considered not to qualify as such, it may be reclassified as a new proposal and sent out for external peer review, or declined by the BTAC.

Proposals that are favorably reviewed by external referees and recommended by the Beam Time Allocation Committee will be scheduled for experiments from January through August 2009.

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For this proposal round:

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION FORM
You must have an account on the new NCNR Information Management System (NCNR-IMS) to submit a proposal. Go to the login link on the upper left hand side of our home page. Login if you have an account, or create an account if you do not. Your email address is your user ID. It may be that you may already have an account of which you are unaware. You will know this if you try to create an account referring to an existing account with the same email address. We can send you your password in the latter case, or if you have forgotten your password. PLEASE do not create duplicate or mutiple accounts.

BT7 TRIPLE-AXIS SPECTROMETER AVAILABLE TO GENERAL USERS
On the new BT7 thermal 3-axis spectrometer, 50% is being offered to users through proposals. The instrument features large double-focusing monochromating and analyzing elements, and consequently provides superior signal intensity at a given energy resolution.

MAIL-IN SAMPLES FOR POWDER DIFFRACTION
We will accept proposals for experiments on the BT1 powder diffractometer on "mail-in" samples. That is, for approved proposals, samples may be mailed to NCNR staff, who will execute the data collection. Up to 25% of BT1 instrument time may be allocated to such proposals.

NEUTRON IMAGING STATION
We are accepting proposals for the Neutron Imaging Facility in the confinement buiding.

TIPS ON PROPOSAL WRITING
The BTAC recommends that applicants read the tips listed on the proposal instructions page, with new specific suggestions from the SANS subcommitee of the BTAC.

EQUATIONS AND GREEK CHARACTERS
Since the proposals are viewed as html files, Greek characters and simple equations may be included by using the appropriate html references for Greek and math symbols. (e.g., α for α) Examples

QUICK ACCESS PROPOSALS
If a user feels that beam time is required very soon to carry out important measurements that cannot be delayed, a proposal may be submitted requesting expedited access. The regular Web proposal form should be used, and NCNR personnel must be notified. The proposal will be reviewed by the BTAC, and held to a substantially higher standard than regular proposals.

Detailed Instructions

PROPOSAL LENGTH LIMIT
The length limit of the text for experiment description in regular proposals is 8000 characters (including spaces), or approximately three double-spaced typed pages. A convenient counter for the experiment description textbox shows space remaining, and prevents the applicant from entering more than the character count limit.

 
In the current call for proposals, the following instruments are offered to applicants.

High Resolution Powder Diffractometer

Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) - 30 m (NG3)

Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) - 30 m (NG7)

Ultra-Small Angle Neutron Scattering (USANS) instrument

Reflectometer - horizontal geometry

Reflectometer - vertical geometry

AND/R Diffractometer/Reflectometer

Cold Neutron Triple-Axis with Polarized Beam Option (SPINS)

Thermal Neutron Triple-Axis with Polarized Beam Option (BT7)

Backscattering Spectrometer

Disk-Chopper Spectrometer

Neutron Spin-Echo Spectrometer

Neutron Imaging Facility

To apply for beam time, please use the WEB PAGE PROPOSAL FORM. This is our required format, since it allows efficient processing of your proposal.

If you would like more detailed information about the NCNR instruments than is given on these pages, please contact the appropriate instrument scientist. For more general information about the NCNR, call W. A. Kamitakahara at (301) 975-6878, or inquire by email to wkamitakahara@nist.gov, or FAX a message to (301) 921-9847.

Last modified 15-September-2008