The Advanced Photon Source
a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility

Beamline Selection

The APS-U Project beamline selection process is a multistage process described by the APS-U Beamline Selection Roadmap. The first step is the submission of a white paper.  White papers will be evaluated by the APS-U Project Beamline Review Committee and by APS/APS-U Project Management against criteria described below.  Subsequently, developers of white papers will be notified whether they will be asked to submit full proposals.  Full proposals will only be accepted based on approved white papers.

The deadline for white paper submission is January 25, 2016.  Responses to proposers and solicitation for full proposals is expected by March 15, 2016. White papers should be submitted (in pdf format) along with a covering e-mail to APSUBeamlines@aps.anl.gov.  Submitters will receive a reply to acknowledge receipt of the white paper.

For information on the beamline selection process or for technical information about the APS-U Project please contact either:

  • Dean Haeffner, Experimental Facilities Associate Project Manager, APS-U Project, haeffner@aps.anl.gov
  • Denny Mills, Deputy Associate Laboratory Director for Photon Sciences, Advanced Photon Source, dmm@aps.anl.gov
White Paper Content

White papers should not exceed 10 pages in length, and should include the following content:

  • Cover page with brief title, developers’ names and affiliations, and abstract (150 word limit) that will be made publicly available.  A principal developer must be indicated as the point of contact for the white paper, with full contact information provided.  (1 page, not included in page count)
  • Science case (3-4 pages)
  • Beamline description  (2-3 page)
  • Explicit explanation of the use of APS-U characteristics (1 page)
  • Scientific community and stakeholder discussion (2 pages)
  • References (i.e., citations) and CVs of proposers (not included in page count) (Note: CVs are not required for white papers, but may be included if the authors wish.)

While beamline estimated cost information is not expected in the content of the whitepaper, the beamline technical description should be of sufficient detail to allow APS-U Project staff to develop a rough cost estimate.
Evaluation Criteria

White papers will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

  • Science/technological/industrial impact
    • Does the proposal enable high-impact scientific, technological or industrial research?
  • Beamline quality and competiveness
    • Will the proposed beamline be “best-in-class” among worldwide facilities?
  • Uniqueness and use of the APS-U enhanced capabilities
    • Does the proposal make good use of the enhanced and/or unique capabilities of the APS-U?
  • Predicted productivity
    • What is the potential user demand?
    • Does the proposal meet the needs of a scientific community?
    • What is the potential for high-impact publications?
  • Feasibility of design and estimated cost
    • Does the proposal describe a feasible concept?
    • Is there a high degree of certainty that the performance goals can be obtained?