Access Activities are the largest and most important part of the NMI3 proposal. All of the European facilities which offer external user programmes are included, with the exception of the Institut Laue Langevin (by its own choice).
The aim is to increase the use of neutron scattering and muon spectroscopy by increasing the possibilities for new users, particularly those from ‘complementary techniques’, and users from different countries, particularly those with no national or small facilities.
It is absolutely vital for the field to maintain and increase the user base, its spread across facilities and mobility between them. The larger international facilities rely heavily on the health of the scientific programmes at the smaller facilities. Not all experiments require the highest fluxes – some scientific ‘tour de force’ experiments actually require the larger amounts of real time available at less powerful sources. Smaller facilities play a key role in training users, particularly students, and in helping to develop novel techniques. In turn the smaller facilities rely on the larger ones to provide the experimental possibilities that they lack.
The Access Activities also contribute in a general context to mobility of European scientists, exchange of ideas and cultural exchange.
The Access Activities represent less than 10% of the total use of facilities (predominantly national), which all have well developed access procedures. These are very comparable and operate to similarly high standards. It is therefore not to be expected (or even practical or desirable) to have a single joint access procedure, but some specific collaborations are proposed in particular cases.
Users often tend to use the facility with which they are most familiar, rather than necessarily that which is optimum for their experiment or to which they have most rapid access. Another aim of NMI3 must therefore be to make users more aware of the many possibilities that will exist through the Access Activities. The fact that facilities are generally offering access under very similar conditions/criteria makes this task easier. The central NMI3 web site will provide links to the instrumentation available at all facilities, but structured to take the visitor from ‘science’ to ‘instrument type’ to ‘how to get access’ in three clicks.
For the first time European users will have a comprehensive overview of the relevant capability of the combined European infrastructures. Public Understanding of Science articles will provide another way for non-specialists to link to the same information.
The NMI3 deliberately does not aim to jointly operate everything. An element of competition between facilities is healthy and should be continued. Everyone wants to have the ‘best’ experiments on their instruments. However the NMI3 must try to ensure that high quality science does not ‘fall through the gaps’ in the application procedure mechanisms, or not get done at the right time because of delays. Facilities will be encouraged to direct proposers towards suitable alternatives if they are unable to give beam time to good quality proposals.
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