New ELECMI open access protocol

The ICTS ELECMI (elecmi.es) renews its commitment to the academic and industrial sectors. It does so by launching a new form of application for its unique equipment (ultra-high resolution transmission electron microscopes, UHR-TEM, dual beam ion, and electron microscopes, (cryo)-Dual-Beams, as well as local probe microscopes, JT-STM). All of them are singular facilities for the analysis and characterization of materials, which can be used free of charge if the application receives a high scientific-technical qualification.

The main novelties of the competitive open access protocol include (i) the creation of a single entry point for access to the ELECMI singular facilities and (ii) the offer of granted access time.

The proposals received will be first evaluated by the facility’s staff to check their technical-scientific feasibility, and will be subsequently submitted to a peer review system and finally reviewed and prioritized by an Access Committee composed of a majority of independent experts, as well as ELECMI members. The best-evaluated proposals will be granted a measurement time at no cost. The process will be very competitive so we strongly recommend the write up of proposals at a high scientific and technical level. In our website (access protocol section) you can find recommendations to prepare a successful application.

This will provide public and private research centers with extremely valuable access to the best surface and material characterization equipment in Europe. On-demand access will also continue to be available for both single pieces of equipment and all ELECMI’s complementary characterization equipment, thus providing comprehensive support for the industrial and scientific requirements of ELECMI’s users.

The centers that currently integrate ELECMI are the CNME (National Electron Microscopy Center) of the Complutense University of Madrid; the LMA (Advanced Microscopy Laboratory) of the University of Zaragoza; the DME (Electron Microscopy Division) of the University of Cadiz and the UMEAP (Unit of Electron Microscopy Applied to Materials) of the University of Barcelona.

The next competitive open access call will open on March 15, 2023, and the deadline for receipt of applications will be March 31, 2023. The resolution is scheduled for May 2023.

All the information is available on the ELECMI website:https://elecmi.es/en/access-protocol-2/