All Beamlines (Except MX)

Proposal Submission

General User beamtime is via competitive peer review, twice per year, emphasizing the excellence of science where there is intent to publish scientific results. See Call for Proposal Deadlines for important dates regarding the Call for Proposals.

During the Call for Proposals, users can submit a new proposal or a beamtime request (BTR) against an active project.

Proposal Review

All new proposals submitted through the Call for Proposals are subject to technical, safety, ethics (if applicable), and peer review. Click here for details about the Peer Review evaluation process.

Beamtime Allocation

The Allocation Committee allocates beamtime on all beamlines (except MX) and for all categories. See Beamtime Allocation for General User beamtime allocation.

Proposals awarded beamtime require an appropriate address for invoicing purposes. Invoices are generated on a regular basis for an access fee of $1 per eight hour shift and fees for other items such as materials, supplies, and shipping/receiving of samples/products.

Scheduling Beamtime

CLS schedules research on all beamlines. Each scheduling cycle will identify the number of eight-hour shifts to be allocated to each experiment or group. The beamline staff schedule beamtime on each experimental facility using input from the Allocation Committee, Beamteam, and users to optimize the final schedule. Confirmation of scheduling is provided via the User Portal (see Creating and Managing your Proposal).

Given the complex nature of synchrotron facilities, when user beamtime is lost due to unforeseen circumstances, it will not automatically be rescheduled. CLS is committed to working with affected users to maintain the continuity of their experimental programs. On a user-by-user basis, discretionary time may be allocated when possible.

Appeals 

CLS promotes and encourages open communication between all users of the beamlines at CLS. Appeals relating to proposal ratings and/or allocation will follow the process identified in the appeals guidelines.

• Submit a New Proposal
  1. Contact the appropriate CLSI beamline scientist for the beamline you are applying for to discuss your research.
  2. Log in to the User Portal.  If you have not previously registered you will be required to register prior to submitting a proposal. 
  3. Complete the proposal submission form, ensuring to select General User for the proposal type.
  4. Each field in the proposal form has instructions associated with it, appearing on the right-hand side of the screen. Please take the time to carefully read the instructions.
  5. Once a proposal passes the technical and peer reviews, it is turned into a project, and is valid for 4 cycles (2 years), unless otherwise indicated.
• Submit a Beamtime Request (BTR)

  An active project does not automatically receive beamtime each cycle, therefore a BTR must be submitted for each scheduling period during the Call for Proposals. A BTR is used to request shifts in the upcoming cycle. Active projects submitting a BTR are not re-evaluated and will retain the initial peer review score received.  Allocation of shifts is based on the highest ranked proposals (both new and active). Note: The highest ranked score is 1 and the lowest is 5.

  1. Log in to the User Portal and select Home → My Projects to view a list of projects. Click on the Create beamtime request icon under the Shifts section on the project page.
  2. Enter the desired number of shifts for this cycle only.
  3. Enter the justification, comments, and good/poor dates for scheduling considerations if applicable.
• Clone a Project

  A cloned proposal is a exact replica of an existing proposal. Cloning is used when a user is continuing with the research started in a Rapid Access proposal or from a General User proposal that has expired. Cloning a proposal transfers all the information from the original proposal form into a new proposal form. Users can update any of the information as needed in the new, cloned proposal prior to submitting. Note: only the Spokesperson or Delegate can clone a proposal (team members cannot).

  1. Select My Proposals to view a list of your proposals.
  2. Select the proposal to clone.
  3. Click on the Clone icon on the proposal page.
  4. Select the appropriate proposal type (General User Access if submitting during the Call for Proposals)
  5. Update the proposal as required.
  6. Submit.