- SACLA User Information - http://sacla.xfel.jp -

Call for SACLA Proprietary Time-Designated Proposals

For the proprietary time-designated proposal program, users can submit their proprietary research proposals with designation of beamtime. The charge of the beamtime for this program is 1,647,000 yen/2 hours (regular fee plus 50% premium).

1. Applicant Eligibility

Applicants/project leaders should be affiliated with a corporate enterprise located and registered in Japan.

2. Beamlines and Equipment Available to Users

The beamlines available are BL3(XFEL1), BL2(XFEL2), BL1(SXFEL). For details, please visit the Beamline Technical Information of SACLA HP.
The beamtime for this program is allocated in units of two hours.

Please consult the XFEL Utilization Division on the schedule to be available in advance of your application.

3. Fees

    1. Beamtime Fee
      [Proprietary Time-Designated Proposal] 1,647,000 yen/2 hours (Tax included*)
    2. User Fees
      All users are required to pay the fees to cover the costs of beamline consumables actually used (user fees). User fees are composed of a fixed fee charged for wear and tear on the facility and a variable fee.
      A. Fixed Fee
      [Proprietary Time-Designated Proposal] 2,680 yen/2 hours (Tax included*)
      B. Usage-Based Fee (liquid helium)
      Calculated Based on the Amount Actually Used: 9,540 yen/liter (Tax included*)

*Please understand that there is a possibility that we cannot provide stable supply of Helium due to the recent situation regarding global helium supply, and please note that the price is subject to change.

4.Application Method

Applicants/project leaders are required to submit proposals online from SACLA UI site through the web-based proposal submission system.

    1. User Registration
      To submit an application form, user accounts (user card ID number and password) of SPring-8/SACLA are required for all participants of the experiment. For the registration, please visit the web site/User Registration.
    2. Application Method
    3. Applicants/project leaders are required to submit proposals online from SACLA UI site through the web-based proposal submission system.
    4. SACLA UI site
      My Page > Login > Application / Reporting > Proposal Submission > New
      To create a new application for Proprietary Time-Designated Proposal, click Proprietary Research, and click START of SACLA Time-Designated Proposal to proceed to the next page.
    5. To avoid losing work in the event of a browser crash or unexpected logout, you are strongly encouraged to draft your application offline first using a MS Word templates.

 

Proposal Application Template
 SACLA Time-Designated Proposal (Proprietary)

Please note that only the project leaders can submit proposals. After the application submission, the project team members will be able to view the application form.

  1. Confirmation E-mail
    Upon successful submission, you will receive a confirmation email with a copy of Agreement (Rules for Users) in PDF format attached to it. If you do not receive the confirmation email, please log in to the system and check if your proposal has been submitted successfully.
  2. Agreements
    For proprietary research, you need to submit a “Proprietary Use Agreement for Public Beamline*” and “Proprietary Use Pledge for SACLA Public Beamline.” Please download these agreements from the UI site, have them signed and send them to the SACLA Users Office by post.
    * Sign by the person who is responsible for the payment.

5. Submission Deadline

Although we accept applications on a rolling basis (no specific submission deadline), please submit your proposal at least three weeks before the designated period.

6. Review Criteria

Proprietary research should be reviewed in terms of ethicality, technical feasibility, and the safety of the experiment on the basis of criteria 3-5.

[SACLA Research Proposals Review Criteria]

Research proposals of a wide range of scientific disciplines shall be fully peer-reviewed and then selected under the criteria outlined below.

Proposal selection should be based on the Science and Technology Basic Plan and other related national policies while balancing international cooperation and competitiveness. Furthermore, proposals contributing to training researchers should also be noted.

  1. Scientific and technical relevance (One of the following criteria shall be fulfilled.):
    1-1 The proposed research is of cutting edge scientific and technological
    value (i.e. innovative and pioneering) or expected to contribute to
    opening up new possibilities of SACLA and must meet either of
    the following criteria:
    a) Expected to make a significant scientific contribution.
    b) Expected to contribute to increasing industrial use.
    1-2 The proposed research has social significance or will contribute to the social economy.
  2. Necessity of SACLA as a research tool.
  3. Conformity to the Science and Technology Basic Law and social norms: the implementation of the research proposal is appropriate in light of the Law and socially accepted ideas, e.g., the implementation of the proposed research and the use of research results are exclusively for peaceful purposes.
  4. Technical feasibility.
  5. Safety of the experiment.
  6. Proprietary proposals shall be reviewed under the criteria 3 through 5 above.

 

7. Notification of Review Results

Applicants will be notified of the review results via email promptly after the proposal submission.

8. Others

  1. Accompanying Samples/Reagents
    Changes to your “List of Samples, Reagents, etc.” will not be accepted. (We do not have enough time to review such changes.)
  2. Radiation Worker Registration
    Based on the Japanese Law (Ordinance on Prevention of Ionizing Radiation Hazards), all SACLA users are required to register as SPring-8/SACLA radiation workers. For details, please click here.
  3. Safety Precaution
    For your safety, do not work alone. Please work in a group of two or more.
  4. Cancellation of Beamtime
    Please be advised that your scheduled beamtime may be cancelled in emergencies such as equipment failure, natural disaster, pandemic, etc. In such cases, users cannot claim compensation for the lost beamtime.
  5. General Insurance and Compensation
    Users shall take out appropriate personal injury and liability insurance before conducting experiments. If users damage SPring-8/SACLA facilities, equipment or persons, either willfully or through gross negligence, JASRI may require them to meet all or part of the cost of repairs. JASRI shall take due account of all relevant circumstances in determining the degree of user liability.
  6. Experiment Summary Report and Publications
    The project leaders of proprietary research are not required to submit their experiment summary report and to publish their research results.

9. Contact / Consultation

  1. General Inquiries
    SPring-8/SACLA Users Office
    Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI)
    1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun
    Hyogo 679-5198 Japan
    Tel: +81-(0)791-58-0961
    Fax: +81-(0)791-58-0965
    e-mail:sacla.jasri@spring8.or.jp
  2. Consultation for the available date and technical issues
    XFEL Utilization Division
    Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI)
    1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun
    Hyogo 679-5198 Japan
    e-mail:sacla-bl.jasri@spring8.or.jp

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