Postgraduate Noticeboard

UK X-ray free electron lasers Science Case: contribute your thoughts to a survey and endorse a support letter for the “UK XFEL” project

In 2019 STFC launched a project to develop a Science Case for a next generation X-ray free electron laser (XFEL), the UK XFEL project. The scientific lead of this project is Jon Marangos (Imperial, Physics) and the science team comprises a wide spectrum of experts from the disciplines already impacted by XFELs including from Imperial: Jasper van Thor (Life Sciences) and Xiaodong Zhang (Infectious Disease) and David Dye (Materials).

As part of the broadening of the community engagement for a UK XFEL, a community survey has been launched, including a support letter for the “UK XFEL” project that can be endorsed (you can view the letter below and find out more about the project here. You can complete the survey with or without endorsing the letter). The team is seeking to learn more about XFEL active researchers and potential future active researchers across all disciplines. The survey will only take a few minutes to complete.

Support letter for the “UK XFEL” project

“To whom it may concern,

X-ray free electron lasers (XFELS) have emerged as important and wide-ranging tools for advanced science over the last decade. Their impact has been extensive (from catalysis and energy research to structural biology and laboratory astrophysics) and has opened-up a new era in research in structural dynamics. In the UK and around the world significant numbers of scientists have begun to engage with these opportunities, and many more are hoping to do so as the capabilities are developed, and as capacity grows so that it becomes easier to secure access.

The UK XFEL Science Case https://www.clf.stfc.ac.uk/Pages/UK-XFEL-science-case.aspx examines the transformative scientific opportunities that will be created with a Next Generation XFEL i.e. one that can deliver near transform limited pulses, high reproducibility, and synchronised to a wide range of external beams (e.g. lasers, THz and electrons) all delivered at a high repetition rate with a pulse structure matching state-of-the-art sample delivery and detector technologies. We strongly endorse this scientific vision, and fully support the next stage in the efforts to ensure that there is an overall capacity increase and that these new capabilities can be made available over the next decade for advancing science and technology.”

The survey

The survey link is: https://forms.gle/KdZ3XefZHt9oNYY26

Read UK X-ray free electron lasers Science Case: contribute your thoughts to a survey and endorse a support letter for the “UK XFEL” project in full

Students and staff are invited to contribute to important ongoing work to develop a positive working culture, with a focus on identifying practical actions for positive and sustainable cultural change.

The Working Together Task Group will be running a number of facilitated conversations with the College community in May and June, to inform recommendations for implementation in the new academic year.

External independent facilitator, Louisa Hardman, who has extensive experience of supporting positive change in complex institutions including universities, charities and the NHS, is helping the Group develop this work, supported by our College HR and Organisational Development teams.

Anyone at the College is welcome to be part of the conversation and there are different ways to take part:

• Staff and student representatives with formal leadership responsibilities at all levels across the College will receive personal invitations to the conversation sessions shortly.
• Open sessions will be held for staff and students who would like to take part in the facilitated exercise, although these will be on a first come basis.

o    Staff should sign up here.

o    Students should sign up here

• Written submissions are also invited if you can’t take part or choose not to attend a session.

The Working Together Task Group will provide its report and recommendations to the President’s and Provost’s Boards this Summer for implementation to begin in the new academic year.

Read Opportunity to contribute to the Working Together Task Group  in full