Rapid Access Proposals
Sometimes special circumstances may lead to a researcher’s request for beam time outside the normal proposal cycle. Such proposals are submitted as discretionary time, are intended to be rare, will be submitted only after discussion with the instrument scientist, and require approval through a division director. A user cannot submit a rapid access request from outside of NScD.
The NScD policy states the following:
Rapid Access Mode: Mechanism for short-turnaround access to beam time needs that arise between the formal review and allocation cycles. This mode includes urgent requests for “hot science” experiments. Given that such requests may displace already scheduled user experiments, it is understood that they will be infrequent and subject to special review for scientific merit and potential conflict of interest. The threshold for awarding a Rapid Access proposal is very high. Requests for beam time via this mode are initiated by contacting the responsible NScD division director before the proposal is submitted.
