Call for 2017B Budding Researchers Support Proposals
This call has been closed.
The Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI) is calling for 2017B (October 2017 – February 2018) Budding Researchers Support Proposals. Interested parties are encouraged to apply. Please read the following instructions in full before preparing your application.
Contents
1. What is the Budding Researchers Support Program?
2. Application Requirements
3. Support for Expenses
4. Research Period
5. Beamlines and Beamtime Available to Users
6. Several Bunch Mode Operation
7. Proposal Submission
8. Submission Deadline for Online Proposals: June 8, 2017, 10:00 am (Japan Time)
9. Proposal Review
10. Notification of Review Results
11. Report Submission
12. Publication of Research Results
13. Others
13.1 User Fees
13.2 Complementary Use with SACLA, J-PARC MLF or the K computer
13.3 Deadline for 2018A Proposals (next half-year research term)
13.4 General Insurance and Compensation
14. Consultation
15. Contact
1. What is the Budding Researchers Support Program?
The Budding Researchers Support Program is the research proposal using SPring-8 installed synchrotron radiation with broad wavelength range spanning infrared light to X-rays and advanced measurement systems (same as General Proposals) and intends to encourage budding researchers who will shape the future of synchrotron radiation research. Under the program, we will provide support for graduate students with an exploratory and original research proposal or research theme. Interested and qualified candidates are encouraged to apply. Please prepare your proposal application using the following guidelines and instructions. Please also refer to the "Call for 2017B SPring-8 Research Proposals - Overview -."
2. Application Requirements
Applicants must be either
a) Ph.D. students or
b) Master’s students, who will be PhD. students at the time of experiment at the SPring-8.
Applicants are required to show initiative, work independently, and be self-reliant when conducting research. All applicants must obtain permission to apply from their PhD. advisors, who can be responsible for the experiment at SPring-8. If you are unsure whether or not you qualify, please contact the SPring-8 Users Office at sp8jasri@spring8.or.jp.
IMPORTANT:
Users must maintain their student status at the time of experiment. Otherwise, users are required to carry out their approved Budding Researchers Support Proposals as General Proposals and are no longer eligible for reimbursement of domestic travel and lodging expenses. If you have graduated from school/taken a job and will no longer be a student at the time of experiment, you must report to the Users Office (see 15. Contact). Failing to do so may result in you having to refund the amount paid to you.
3. Support for Expenses
In principle, we will cover the domestic travel expenses including the SPring-8 Guest House lodging expenses for two people (a project leader and one student as a project team member).
4. Research Period
[At All Public Beamlines except BL14B2, BL19B2 and BL46XU, 9 RIKEN Beamlines]
From October 2017 to February 2018 (tentative)
From 2015A, the effective period of the proposals in the field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis with the use of Macromolecular Crystallography Beamlines (BL41XU, BL38B1, BL32XU, and BL26B1/B2; collectively referred to as PX-BLs) has been set as one year. In addition, the beamtime has been allocated four times a year as needed. These measures are taken to meet the requirement for as-needed measurement by the users and improve their convenience. For users who plan to apply for the use of PX-BLs, be sure to refer to “2017B Operation of Proposals in the Field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis.”
[At BL14B2, BL19B2 and BL46XU (BLs intended for industrial applications)]
From October to late November 2017 (first half of 2017B) (tentative)
There are two calls for proposals per research term (4 deadlines per year): this time, JASRI is calling for proposals to be conducted during the first half of 2017B.
We will call for proposals to be conducted during the second half of 2017B in August 2017. Please note that these beamilines are available only for industrial application. If you wish to apply, please be sure to select Budding Researchers Support Proposals for Industrial Application as Type of Proposal on User Information Website.
5. Beamlines and Beamtime Available to Users
For beamlines available to users and beamtime allocated to each beamline, click the link below. Please note that the numbers of shifts specified in the lists include the shifts allocated to General Proposals as well as newly approved proposals (Long-Term, Partner User, Non-Proprietary Grant-Aided, and Epoch-Making Initiatives Proposals).
For the proposals in the field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis with the use of PX-BLs, be sure to refer to “2017B Operation of Proposals in the Field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis” before applying.
For the specifications and status of experimental stations, please check the Beamline List.
To see what kinds of experiments have been performed at SPring-8, please refer to the SPring-8 Solution Database.
6. Several Bunch Mode Operation
For several bunch mode operation, please refer to "1.4 Several Bunch Mode Operation in 2017B" in the "Call for 2017B SPring-8 Research Proposals - Overview -" or "Several Bunch Modes" of the SPring-8 Website.
7. Proposal Submission
Applicants/project leaders are required to submit proposals online through the web-based proposal submission system. Before starting the application process, please first carefully read the "Call for 2017B SPring-8 Research Proposals -Overview-." If you have any questions about using synchrotron radiation or your experiment plan, please feel free to contact our consultation coordinator (See 14. Consultation).
User Information Website (UI site) > Log in to My Page > Application/Reporting > Proposal/Use Plan Submission > New > Non-Proprietary Research > Budding Researchers Support Proposal
Important Notes about Information Required on the Application:
For step-by-step instructions on how to submit proposals, please see this page.
[Industrial Application]
The information required on the online application for industrial application is different from other areas of research; so please draft your application offline first using the MS Word template (for industrial application, non-proprietary research).
[Protein Crystal Analysis]
When you plan to use PX-BLs and apply for proposals in the field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis, be sure to refer to “2017B Operation of Proposals in the Field of Life Science/Protein Crystal Analysis” because different types of information are required to complete the application form.
[One-year Proposal]
The program of one-year proposals is intended for research projects that require multiple experiments spanning two half-year research terms (one year). One-year proposals are accepted at all public beamlines except for three beamlines intended for industrial application (BL14B2, BL19B2, and BL46XU), but the call for one-year proposals is announced for research terms B only; and there is no call for the proposals for research terms A. When submitting a one-year proposal, make sure to choose “One-year” for the Type of Application on the online application form. Successful applicants are allocated beamtime in 2017B and 2018A. Please note that your one-year proposal application may be selected as a General Proposal and beamtime is allocated only for 2017B when deemed appropriate.
8. Submission Deadline for Online Proposals
Thursday, June 8, 2017, 10:00 am (Japan time)
To avoid last-minute technical problems and possible network congestion caused by heavy online traffic, you are strongly encouraged to complete and submit your application well in advance of the deadline. If you have trouble completing/submitting your application online, please contact the SPring-8 Users Office (see 15. Contact) before the deadline.
Upon successful submission, you will receive a confirmation email attached with a copy of the Agreement (Rules for Users) in PDF format. If you do not receive the confirmation email, please log in to the system and check if your proposal has been submitted successfully.
Please make sure to print out the Agreement*, have it signed by the project leader and the PhD. advisor, and send it to the Users Office by post no later than June 15, 2017.
* Important Note for PhD. Advisors:
By signing the agreement, you agree to register as a project team member, to bear equal responsibility with the project leader, and to come to SPring-8 (if at all possible) to provide support, advice, and guidance to the project leader at the time of experiment.
9. Proposal Review
Submitted Budding Researchers Support Proposals are subject to review as General Proposals at the SPring-8 Proposal Review Committee (SPring-8 PRC). At the SPring-8 PRC, the scientific and technological significance, the necessity of SPring-8 as a research tool, the scientific feasibility, safety of the experiment, and ethics are comprehensively peer reviewed. If the research area of your proposal is Industrial Applications, the review of the scientific and technological significance will be focused on the potential and significance of the expected results in terms of technologies for industrial base, the social significance of the proposal, and the contribution to social economy.
10. Notification of Review Results
Applicants will be notified of the review results in writing late August 2017.
11. Report Submission
Users are required to submit an Experiment Summary Report online within 60 days of their experiment. Submitted reports are made publicly available online two weeks after the report submission deadline for the last experiment of the term (60 days after the end of each half-year research term + two weeks). For details, click here.
12. Publication of Research Results
Publish your research in the form of a refereed journal (incl. refereed proceedings and dissertation), a SPring-8/SACLA Research Report refereed by JASRI, or a technical journal approved by JASRI, and register the published works with the Publications Database within three years from the end of the research term. In the publications, please clearly state that the results were obtained through the use of the SPring-8 specifying the relevant experiment title and number.
UI site > Log in to My Page > Application/Reporting > After Experiment > Publications Entry
For details, click here.
13. Others
13.1 User Fees
Supported by the Government's treasury, 2017B users of Budding Researchers Support Program are exempt from paying user fees (fixed and variable fees) within the limits of the budget. Please note that the variable fee is not always covered when it exceeds the limits of the budget.
Click here for more details about the user fees.
13.2 Complementary Use with SACLA, J-PARC MLF or the K computer
From 2014A, we also invite SPring-8 Budding Researchers Support Proposals for complementary use with J-PARC MLF (neutron facility) or the supercomputer (K). SACLA has been added to those facilities for complementary use from 2017A. For details, refer to the "Call for 2017B SPring-8 Research Proposals in Complementary Use with SACLA, J-PARC MLF or the K computer."
13.3 Deadline for 2018A Proposals (next half-year research term)
Deadline for 2018A proposals (first half of fiscal 2018) is scheduled for early December 2017.
Please note that we will call for proposals to be conducted during the second half of 2017B at beamlines intended for industrial applications (BL14B2, BL19B2 and BL46XU) in August 2017.
13.4 General Insurance and Compensation
Users shall take out appropriate personal injury and liability insurance before conducting experiments. If their project teams include students, they shall make sure that all the students take out appropriate personal injury and liability insurance. If users damage SPring-8 facilities, equipment or persons, either willfully or through gross negligence, JASRI may require them to meet all or part of the cost of repairs. JASRI shall take due account of all relevant circumstances in determining the degree of user liability.
14. Consultation
To promote the Budding Researchers Support Program, consultation service has been launched since November 2011. For help or advice on any aspect of the program, please contact:
[Consultation Coordinator]
Shigeru Kimura
Research & Utilization Division, JASRI
Tel: +81-(0)791-58-0919
E-mail: budding@spring8.or.jp
15. Contact (questions about proposal process):
SPring-8 Users Office, JASRI
1-1-1 Kouto, Sayo-cho, Sayo-gun
Hyogo 679-5198 Japan
Fax: +81-(0)791-58-0965
E-mail: sp8jasri@spring8.or.jp