[Neutron] The ESS Instrument Suite is Taking Shape

[Sindra Petersson Årsköld]

*The ESS Instrument Suite is Taking Shape*

The May meeting of the ESS Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) was a
critical step for the facility.
 

During three intense days, the SAC reviewed 14 neutron instrument
concepts, proposed by teams from around Europe to be built at ESS. The
instruments included in the ESS suite will provide the user community with
unique tools for science - and the composition of the instrument suite
defines the scientific capabilities of ESS for a long time to come. Nine
of the proposed instruments were recommended to advance to the phase of
preliminary engineering design, joining the three instruments that were
selected in last year's round. The final decision will be made by the
Steering Committee in September.
 

"One can already now foresee that some of the instruments have the
potential to be truly transformative for neutron scattering", says Prof.
Aleksandar Matic, SAC Chair.
 

The science cases presented by the instrument teams covered a lot of
ground including solar cell and battery technologies, geological
phenomena, complex biological interactions and the mysteries of magnetism
and superconductivity. These visions were expertly coupled to projected
instrument performance and sample environment equipment, enabled by a
combination of new technology and the unique characteristics of the ESS
neutron pulse. The expected user demand was discussed for each instrument,
as were technical challenges and
estimated performance gains. Those gains may be as high as three orders of
magnitude for some instruments.
 

The future users of ESS are deeply involved in defining the suite of 22
ESS instruments: groups in all the partner countries are invited to
develop instrument concepts, which are then reviewed by external advisory
bodies with expertise from all around the world. This process culminates
in the SAC recommendation. ESS management uses this recommendation to
prepare a proposal for the ESS Steering Committee, who decide which
instrument concepts move into Phase 1: Preliminary Engineering Design.

 
The first round of instrument proposals was held in 2012-2013, and
resulted in three instruments being incorporated into the engineering
design phase. The current round saw many more proposals from the partner
countries, and the SAC recommend that nine of these move forward. If the
recommendation is followed, 12 of the first 16 instruments are now
defined. The next round will be held in 2015 or 2016, and will finalize
the definition of the first 16 slots.
 

"We need the competence and experience of all our partners, in order to
realize the next-generation neutron source for science," says
Prof. Dimitri Argyriou, ESS Director for Science. "The wide engagement in
the instrument selection process is an indication of the strong commitment
to and need for ESS in the European scientific community."
 

The teams with instruments not recommended at this stage may resubmit a
revised proposal in the next round, or join one of the teams whose
instrument moves ahead. In many cases the capabilities of one instrument
concept can be realized by adjusting the specifications of another, thus
expanding the scientific scope. There is also room for professionals not
currently involved in the ESS instrument program to join. There are
several instrument slots open, and ESS is establishing instrument
consortia to bring the selected instruments to
realisation. These consortia can be broader than the proposing team.

*Instruments recommended by the SAC in 2014 to enter Phase 1.*
- SKADI SANS. 
Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, DE; Laboratoire Léon Brillouin, FR; Delft
University of Technology, NL.
- FREIA reflectomer.
ESS; University of Copenhagen, DK, Technical University of Denmark, DK.
- ESTIA reflectometer.
Paul Scherrer Institute, CH; University of Copenhagen, DK; University of
Southern Denmark, DK.
- CAMEA spectrometer. École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH;
University of Copenhagen, DK; Technical University of Denmark, DK; Paul
Scherrer Institute, CH.
- VOR chopper spectrometer.
ESS; Technical University of Denmark, DK.
- C-SPEC cold chopper spectrometer.
Technische Universität München, DE; Laboratoire Léon Brillouin, FR.
- DREAM powder diffractometer.
Jülich Centre for Neutron Science, DE; ESS; Aachen University, DE;
Stockholm University, SE; Norwegian University of Science and
Technology, NO; Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, NL; Max-Planck Institute für
Festkörperforschung, DE; University of Liege, BE.
- HEIMDAL powder diffractometer.
University of Aarhus, DK; University of Copenhagen, DK; Paul Scherrer
Institute, CH; Technical University of Denmark, DK.
- BEER engineering diffractometer.
Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, DE; Nuclear Physics Institute, CZ; Institute
of Physics, CZ; Technical University of Clausthal, DE.

*Instruments already in Phase 1: Preliminary Engineering Design*
- LoKI SANS. 
ESS; Lund University, SE; Uppsala University, SE; University of
Copenhagen, DK; Paul Scherrer Institute, CH.
- NMX macromolecular diffractometer.
ESS; Institut de Biologie Structurale, FR; University of Aarhus, DK.
- ODIN imaging. 
ESS; University of Copenhagen, DK; Technische Universität München, DE;
Paul Scherrer Institute, CH; Delft University of Technology, NL.
 
 
 
 
 
 


------------------------
Sindra Petersson Årsköld
Ass. Prof, Senior Advisor
ESS
www.esss.se <http://www.esss.se/>