Experimental Data Management

Diamond is committed to ensuring that there is transparency in the manner in which Experimental Data produced using Diamond Facilities is owned, stored, accessed and managed.

 

The purpose of this policy is to provide Users conducting Peer Reviewed Research with information and guidance on Experimental Data ownership, storage, access and management and to ensure that Experimental Data is managed and used in ways that maximises public benefit.

This policy applies to Users of Diamond Facilities who conduct Peer Reviewed Research and produce Experimental Data.

 

Experimental Data arising from Proprietary Research is not covered by this policy and is subject to separate contractual arrangements.

Diamond’s Directors have overall responsibility for this policy. Any queries or suggestions relating to this policy should be sent to [email protected].

Experimental data is User Generated Data and all associated Metadata.

Ownership of Experimental Data is determined by the contractual obligations of the Users. These contractual obligations may be to the Users' Establishment(s), to other Users on the Experimental Proposal, to grant funding agencies or to other third parties, or it may be a pre-existing contractual obligation to Diamond.

Experimental Data will be stored by Diamond for a minimum period of 30 days from the date of its creation.  Following this initial storage period, Diamond will create a single archive copy of the Experimental Data for long-term access.  If more resilient long-term storage is required, this is the Users’ responsibility.

Subject to the section 6 above, during the Embargo Period (3 years from the date on which the User Generated Data is produced at Diamond), access to the Experimental Data will be restricted to the Experimental Team, and Diamond Employees and authorised Diamond service providers, for support and other facility related purposes.

 

Diamond shall use reasonable endeavours to preserve the confidentiality of Experimental Data during the Embargo Period.

 

After the Embargo Period, Diamond may make Experimental Data available on an open access basis under a CC-BY-4.0 licence.

 

Any PI or PI's Establishment that wishes to extend the Embargo Period for an additional 12 months at a time shall be entitled to submit an advance written request to Diamond's User Office not less than 3 months before the end of the Embargo Period. The request should specify the reasons for the proposed extension and will be considered and decided upon at a meeting of Diamond' Executive.

Users are responsible for meeting any third-party data management obligations that may be applicable.

Users are required to acknowledge the source of the Experimental Data and publish all publishable Peer Reviewed Research on an open access basis and in a timely and responsible manner.

This policy may be amended by us from time-to-time and it shall be your responsibility to comply with the terms of this policy from 1st April 2019 and any published amendments thereafter.

 

This policy was last updated and published on our website on 10th December 2018.

For the purposes of this policy, the following definitions shall apply:

 

Alternate Contact: Individuals who are nominated at the PI’s discretion to have the ability to carry out the functions of a PI. The Alternate Contact shall not be authorised to extend the Embargo Period.

 

Diamond: Diamond Light Source Ltd, a company incorporated and registered in England and Wales, with company number 4375679 and with registered office at Diamond House, Harwell Science & Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 ODE, United Kingdom.

 

Diamond Employee: Any person working for Diamond under a contract of employment, joint appointment or secondment arrangement and any Diamond Director or office holder.

 

Diamond Facilities: All research facilities made available by Diamond, including (but not limited to) machinery, equipment, hardware and software.

 

Embargo Period: the period of 3 years from the date on which the User Generated Data is collected or produced at Diamond.

 

Establishment: The User’s employer or the organisation which the User represents on the date the Experimental Data is produced at Diamond.

 

Experimental Data: User Generated Data and all associated Metadata.

 

Experimental Proposal: The Peer Reviewed Research proposal submitted by or on behalf of Users to Diamond’s User Office.

 

Experimental Team: The individuals who are issued with a Diamond user account and (1) appear on the Experimental Proposal; (2) are added to an experimental session by the PI or the Alternate Contact; or (3) are authorised by the PI’s Establishment.

 

In-house Research: Instrument time allocated to Diamond Employees and their collaborators.

 

Metadata: Information pertaining to User Generated Data collected as a result of use of Diamond Facilities and shall include (but shall not be limited to) the context of the experiment, the experimental team, experimental conditions and other logistical information.

 

Peer Reviewed Research: Research using Diamond Facilities that has been evaluated by others working in the same field, is conducted under an Experimental Proposal and for which there is an obligation to publish publishable Results. This specifically includes In-house Research.

 

PI: The principal investigator named on the Experimental Proposal.

 

Proprietary Research: Commercially confidential research using Diamond Facilities and for which there is no obligation to publish the Results.

 

Results: Any inventions, designs, information, know-how, specifications, formulae, Experimental Data, processes, methods, techniques and other technology arising out of Peer Reviewed Research.

 

User Generated Data: Data collected through Peer Reviewed Research, including data that are created automatically or (where relevant) manually by software made available by Diamond and/or Diamond Employee expertise in order to facilitate subsequent analysis of the data.

 

Users: Users shall include the following persons making use of Diamond Facilities: scientists and engineers from academia, research councils and charitable institutions, researchers from commercial and non-commercial organisations and Diamond in-house scientists.