Below are some of the ways that ISIS can contribute to, and partner with, potential CDTs. We would welcome discussions with those putting CDT proposals together on how we can work with you – please contact Martin Jones, Philip King or Sean Langridge at ISIS.
A variety of opportunities already exist within ISIS’s normal activities that are relevant to CDTs:
1. Training opportunities for students:
- Two 1-day meetings annually dedicated to students using ISIS, for training, presenting and networking with other students
- An annual practical neutron training course
- The bi-annual Oxford Neutron Summer School
- The bi-annual ISIS Muon Training School
- Numerous courses and workshops on facility techniques, software and analysis, modelling, etc.
- The experience that students have when they come to ISIS to run experiments (which includes informal, ‘on-the-job’ training in areas such as neutron scattering or muon spectroscopy, complementary characterisation, cryogenics, data analysis, experiment planning, etc.). Around 600 PhD students come to ISIS to run experiments every year.
- Opportunities for students to give talks or seminars
This is not an exhaustive list and we welcome discussion of additional possibilities which might be provided through additional CDT resources. For example, we can consider a special day or course for CDT students where usage of ISIS is likely to be high and where the CDT can provide resources to enable this.
2. ISIS staff as student co-supervisors.
3. ISIS staff as members of advisory boards, steering groups, science advisory groups for CDTs
4. ISIS staff members who can give lectures on neutron scattering or muon spectroscopy
5. The ability to apply for co-funded students within a CDT through the annual ISIS facility development studentship call.
For CDTs where ISIS is likely to have a close involvement – where CDT usage of ISIS is likely to be high and there is benefit in a strong ISIS-CDT partnership – ISIS may pre-allocate one or more co-funded studentships. The criteria for this include ISIS being recognised within the CDT as an academic partner; a suitable project of mutual benefit, with a suitable ISIS co-supervisor, being identified; the ISIS co-supervisor being offered a visiting position at the partner university. We would be pleased to discuss these partnerships with potential CDT proposers.
Provision of beamtime for CDT students
CDTs involving use of ISIS will necessarily require access to ISIS beamtime which is itself a training opportunity for students as described above. Beamtime provision should occur through existing ISIS proposal mechanisms. Proposals involving CDT students will be welcome through the normal (twice per year) ISIS proposal calls. Express access proposals, for small amounts of trial beamtime on some instruments, would also be welcome, as would rapid access proposals for more urgent use of the facility. CDTs involving industrial partners may wish to explore the ISIS collaborative R&D scheme for industry to gain access. For details of ISIS proposal mechanisms please see here. ISIS provides travel and subsistence support for UK-based students to come to the facility for experiments, and contributions towards the cost of consumables for sample preparation for experiments.
