APS User News-at-a-Glance
Issue 11; December 7, 2001

Contents:

1.

Holiday Wishes from the APS

Workshop to Explore Higher Current Operation

User Activity Reports on Web; CD in Preparation

"The Source" Reincarnated

Independent Investigator Program Update

Holiday Closings

Operations Update

1.

Holiday Wishes from the APS
(Contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

The entire staff of the APS wishes you a happy and healthy holiday season. And if you plan to be at the APS during the coming month, we also invite you to join us for either or both of two holiday social events. The APS Spectrum Club holiday luncheon is set for Friday, December 14, 2001, at the Argonne Guest House restaurant. The sumptuous buffet luncheon ($12.00/ticket) will feature door prizes and a visit from Santa himself! APS users can purchase tickets until Wednesday, December 12, 2001, from Laura Morisco in Bldg. 432 or Jill Hebding in Bldg. 438.

Another festive event is the traditional potluck Holiday Feast, which this year will be held on Wednesday, December 19, 2001. Users can register for this incredible spread on-line at

http://www.aps.anl.gov/xfd/communicator/feast/feast01.htm

We hope you'll be able to join APS staff and other APS users for these always enjoyable holiday celebrations.

Workshop to Explore Higher Current Operation
(contact: dmm@aps.anl.gov)

The APS will be holding a workshop on Thursday, January 10, 2002, to start a dialogue between APS staff and the user community to discuss the benefits and associated costs of increased beam current at the APS. The workshop will run from 9:00 a.m. to noon and will take place in Bldg. 401, Room E1100/E1200.

Accelerator enhancements to improve beam stability and brilliance are on-going activities at the APS. During the past year, the APS has instituted top-up operation, as well as developed and implemented a low-emittance lattice that reduces the horizontal emittance by a factor of two. Currently, the magnetic lattice of the accelerator is being altered to improve beam stability by using feedback from insertion device x-ray beam-position monitors (termed the "Decker distortion").

Among potential enhancements to further increase beam brilliance is operation of the storage ring at higher currents. Increasing the stored beam current affects requirements for a number of accelerator components, front ends, and beamline components (shutters, optics, windows, etc.). To fully understand the implications of these altered requirements from both an accelerator and user standpoint, an effective dialog between the APS and its users is essential. If you are interested in attending this workshop, contact Susan Strasser in the APS User Office (strasser@aps.anl.gov).


User Activity Reports for 2000 on Web; CD in Preparation
(Contact: fenner@aps.anl.gov)

Three hundred and twenty-six activity reports for calendar year 2000 are posted at the following Web address:

http://www.aps.anl.gov/ald/test/webars.html

A search engine at this address will yield printable pdfs and reference URLs. Preparation of files for mastering on CD has now begun. Request for the CD can be sent to Richard Fenner at the e-mail address above.

4.

"The Source" Reincarnated
(Contact: fenner@aps.anl.gov)

The venerable and lately dormant APS employee newsletter, "The Source," has been resurrected. A full-color, printable pdf file of the November issue can be found on the Web at http://www.aps.anl.gov/apsnews/apssource.html

Although "The Source" is designed to serve primarily as a newsletter for APS employees, news from the experiment hall floor is an important element of keeping APS staff fully informed. Users are invited to peruse each issue and suggest items to be included in future issues by contacting Rick Fenner at the e-mail address above.

5.

Independent Investigator Program Update
(Contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

As APS beamlines move into full operation, the number of CATs accepting Independent Investigator (II) proposals continues to increase. For the user operations cycle FY 2002-2 (January 23, 2002, through April 28, 2002), nine CATs (19 beamlines) were available to host IIs, and 45 proposals were received. These proposals are currently being reviewed; decisions will be made shortly by each CAT, and proposers will be notified of these decisions in early January.

An II can choose to submit either an individual or a program proposal. Individual proposals are valid only for the requested scheduling period; program proposals are valid for a year (three scheduling periods) and should be restricted to experimental programs that need multiple visits over several scheduling periods.

The next II proposal due date (for scheduling period 2002-3, which encompasses May 29-September 3, 2002) is March 1, 2002. However, II proposals may be submitted at any time and will be reviewed as they are received. (If beam time becomes available, individual CATs have the option of scheduling proposals received after the due date for a particular period.)

Further information about the APS II program and II proposal submission forms can be found at the following Web address:

http://www.aps.anl.gov/ii

6.

Holiday Closings
(Contact: strasser@aps.anl.gov)

Argonne National Laboratory will be closed during the period December 22, 2001, through January 1, 2002. However, since APS user run 2002-1 does not end until December 23, 2001, APS users will have access to Argonne and the APS until the run ends.

The Argonne Guest House (AGH) will be open through the morning of December 24, 2001, but the AGH restaurant will close at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, December 21, and reopen for lunch on January 2, 2002. Individuals staying at the AGH over the weekend will be served a free continental breakfast.

The 5-to-9 Grill, located on the lower level of Bldg. 401 will be open on Friday, December 21, as usual from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m.; on Saturday, December 22, from 11:30 a.m. until 7:00 p.m.; and on Sunday, December 23, from 11:30 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. It will then close for the holiday break and reopen on January 2, 2002, at 5:00 p.m.

7.

Operations Update
(Contact: avr@aps.anl.gov)

The new fiscal year has begun with a redefinition of the normal mode of operation. In the past, normal operation referred to a storage ring refill schedule of twice per day and a horizontal emittance of approximately 7 nm-rad. The normal operating mode now is top-up operation with a horizontal emittance of 3nm-rad. During the scheduled 5000 hours of user operation during this fiscal year, 75% of the time is scheduled in this new, normal mode. The remaining time will be dedicated to the old normal "high emittance"-operating operating mode with refills scheduled for twice per day.

We are currently more than halfway through the first of the three user runs for this year. After the first week, which was operated with high emittance, the rest of the time has been in the standard mode, with over 500 hours delivered with an availability of over 96%. During the top-up, the beam was within 1% of the routine fill level for 93% of the time. The extended operation in the low-emittance mode has enabled the accelerator physicists to better understand the performance of this lattice and to plan for further improvements in both storage-ring performance and beam stability. A period of hybrid operation in the non-top-up mode is scheduled from December 11 through the end of the run on December 2____________________
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