Introduction to the ESRF as a user facility
Important information for first time users
The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, ESRF, is Europe’s most powerful synchrotron radiation source, financed by 19 countries, and dedicated to cutting-edge research over a broad range of science.
Access to some 40 experimental stations, the “beamlines”, is free of charge for academic and non-proprietary industrial research if the user teams are prepared to submit their project to peer review and publish the results of their experiment. For proprietary industrial research, a fee is payable according to the amount of beam time and ESRF staff expertise required. In this case there is no obligation to publish results, and the intellectual property of the client’s discoveries belong to the client.
The beamlines operate 24 hours a day in three shifts of 8 hours. The 30 public beamlines each dedicate about 425 shifts per year to peer-reviewed projects. The 11 beamlines built and operated by Collaborating Research Groups (CRGs) make 1/3 of their beam time available for ESRF peer-reviewed projects. During the year, two long shut-downs are scheduled: 4 weeks in winter and 3 weeks in summer. Other breaks in the operation are for machine-dedicated runs and maintenance days.
During your experiment, a scientist familiar with the beamline will be there to guide you. This person is known as the Local Contact. His/her task is to prepare the beamline, help you to begin your experiment, and to be on call in case of problems.
Applications for beam time for experiments are submitted electronically for two deadlines each year: 1st March and 1st September. In special cases, where projects require a commitment over a longer, three-year period, the ESRF also accepts a limited number of Long Term Projects. Applications for proprietary research can be made at any time, through the dedicated Services for Industry section.
Proposals for public beam time are selected and beam time allocations are made through peer review. There are 11 Review Committees, each with a specific area of expertise.
Invitations for experiments, together with detailed instructions, are sent to the experiment’s proposer(s) by the ESRF User Office, several weeks ahead of a scheduled experiment. A scientist familiar with the beamline is assigned as the Local Contact for each experiment, to guide the user team with their measurements.
Arrangements for meals and accommodation for all users are made by the ESRF, in order to allow experimental teams to concentrate entirely on science. The ESRF contributes to the travel and subsistence expenses of three scientists (four scientists for BAG and LTP experiments) per experiment for scientists affiliated with laboratories in contracting party countries. However, industrial scientists do not receive a contribution to their expenses.
Scientists awarded beam time are expected to publish their results and give proper credit to ESRF staff members and experimental facilities.
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Further information:
- For proprietary research see: Services for Industry
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