Access Routes on I15-1

Standard access is the typical route to experiments at Diamond. Your proposed experiment will take 1-6 days of beamtime, in one session. 

The vast majority of proposals to Diamond are standard access. Calls for standard access proposals are run as part of the main call, which has deadlines twice a year, typically in April and October (see the Users page for exact dates). Successful experiments will be scheduled 6-12 months after the call deadline. 

Proposals should be submitted via the UAS, and you should use the standard science case template which can be downloaded from there once you have started creating your proposal. 

For more details of the workflow, please see the user office guide. 

Easy access is unique to I15-1. Your proposed experiment is simple enough that it will take less than 8 hours of beamtime, and can be managed remotely so there will be no need for you come to Diamond.

Easy access is an acknowledgement that many users require a small number of data collections, or a short amount of beamtime. To this end, we have designed the easy access route to enable users to apply for less than a single 8-hour shift. These experiments use a shorter science case template to reflect the shorter experimental timescale. Please download the template from here.

Calls for easy access proposals are currently run as part of the main call, which has deadlines twice a year, typically in April and October (see the Users page for exact dates). Successful experiments will be scheduled 6-12 months after the call deadline. Only one submission for easy access is permitted per user group per proposal call; if more beamtime is required you should apply with a Standard Access proposal and science case.

I15-1 previously ran a "rapid access" program which operated in a manner similar to this. Note that the old rapid access route has been replaced by this easy access, and a true always-open rapid access route.

Proposals should be submitted via the UAS. 

Rapid access is for any experiment that you urgently need to perform. Rapid access proposals are judged both on science merit and on the genuine and demonstrable need for rapid access. Available slots are limited and awarded on a first-come-first-served basis. 

I15-1 reserves a small number of beamtime sessions for rapid access proposals. A rapid access proposal can be for an experiment which would normally be a standard access proposal (i.e. any normal experiment), or it can be for an experiment that would be more appropriate as an easy access proposal (i.e. it requires less than one day of beamtime and can be run remotely). 

I15-1 accepts rapid access proposals at any time. Proposals should be submitted via the UAS, and you should use the standard science case template which can be downloaded from there once you have started creating your proposal.  

For more details of the workflow, please see the user office guide. 

Long-term proposals are for when you need to perform experiments over a number of sessions, over a period of up to 2 years. Long term proposals can also cover multiple instruments.

Calls for long-term access proposals are run as part of the main call, which has deadlines twice a year, typically in April and October (see the Users page for exact dates). The first session of successful experiments will be scheduled 6-12 months after the call deadline. 

Proposals should be submitted via the UAS, and use a special template which can be downloaded from there once you have started creating your proposal. 

For more details of long-term proposals, please see the user office guide. 

A block allocation group is an access route for consortia of users who require regular access to I15-1 over the course of 2 years. The group is awarded time and the users then organise themselves and set their own individual priorities for how to use the allocated time. 

Calls for BAG access proposals are run as part of the main call, which has deadlines twice a year, typically in April and October (see the Users page for exact dates). The first session of successful experiments will be scheduled 6-12 months after the call deadline. 

Proposals should be submitted via the UAS, and use a special template which can be downloaded from there once you have started creating your proposal. 

For more details of the workflow, please see the user office guide.