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

Selection Process & Roadmap

The APS-U Project beamline selection process is guided by the following principles:

  • Solicit the best ideas from the scientific community
  • Be open and transparent
  • Be efficient, keeping the work for proposers and reviewers to a minimum while carrying out an effective selection process
  • Meet relevant Project deadlines, in particular those for the DOE CD process
  • Involve the APS/APS-U Project review committees in an effective way
  • Allow APS/APS-U Project management input at various stages to help insure that the proposed beamlines meet the needs of the APS Strategic Plan
 
The following outlines the steps in the beamline selection process:
 
White Papers
  1. Call for white papers for beamlines to be included in the APS-U Project
  2. Review/scoring of white papers by an APS-U Project Beamline Review Committee.  This committee will consist of APS SAC & ESAC members and subject matter experts.
  3. APS/APS-U review of proposals and scoring.
    • Feedback may be provided to proposers to modify proposals to better meet APS strategic needs
    • If appropriate, mergers of related proposals may be suggested.
  4. Discussion of white papers with the APS SAC
  5. Decision by APS/APS-U management on disposition of white papers

Full Preliminary Design Proposals

  1. Call for full preliminary design proposals based on approved white papers
    • APS-U Project will provide staff to support engineering activities, and to advise on optics, detectors, and insertion devices
  2. Review of preliminary design proposals
    • Review and scoring by the APS-U Project Beamline Review Committee
    • Preliminary prioritization and selection by APS/APS-U Project management
    • Presentation of preliminary prioritization/selection to the APS SAC for input
  3. Finalization of prioritization and selection by APS/APS-U Project management

The white paper process flow chart is shown below.