EC Funding for External Research Teams within the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Commission

Transnational Access to GSI

under the Integrated Infrastructure Initiative on

STUDY OF STRONGLY INTERACTING MATTER (HadronPhysics2)

Grant Agreement Number 227431

General Information

The GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung GmbH (GSI) operates an accelerator complex which consists of the linear accelerator UNILAC, the heavy-ion synchrotron SIS and the experimental storage-cooler ring ESR. Ions of all elements, from hydrogen to uranium, can be accelerated up to momenta given by the 18 Tm maximum rigidity of the SIS. Even for uranium beams this corresponds to velocities of more than 90% of the velocity of light. Moreover, beams of artificially created unstable nuclei - radioactive ion beams - are available for the research programme, as well as beams of highly ionized atoms up to bare uranium and beams of secondary pions.

The accelerators are complemented by some 20 experimental areas, equipped with modern spectrometers and detector systems, which offer outstanding opportunities for fundamental studies in hadron and nuclear matter research and in the fields of nuclear and atomic physics. At the same time, also forefront application-oriented research is being performed in plasma physics, material science, biophysics and radiation medicine. The laboratory has thus become a focal point where scientists from both domestic and foreign universities and other research institutions collaborate.

Within the next years, during the construction of FAIR (Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research) experiments at GSI will continue, though experimental beamtime will be gradually reduced until when first experiments start at FAIR. With the increase in energy and intensity of ion beams by factor 20, beams of protons, antiprotons and unstable nuclei supplied by FAIR in brilliant quality, new challenging research topics can be addressed. Beams supplied by GSI and FAIR offer such a large spectrum for high-energy particle research, that more than 2400 scientists worldwide have already declared their interest in performing experiments at those facilities.

Research capabilities

GSI provides ion beams of all stable elements up to uranium with energies from the Coulomb barrier up to 2 AGeV. In addition, radioactive and cooled stable beams with high charge states up to U⁹²⁺ can be delivered. Moreover, also secondary pion beams with momenta from 0.5 GeV/c to 2.5 GeV/c are available.

The high standards of the accelerators are complemented by a large number of technically highly advanced experimental facilities. In the field of hadron physics, GSI provides the following equipment:

• the 4π detector FOPI to study the properties of compressed heated and highly excited nuclear matter. FOPI provides a complete momentum coverage for charged particles emerging from the reaction zone.
• the High-Acceptance Di-Electron Spectrometer HADES to study the properties of vector mesons in nuclear matter.
• a secondary beam facility for pion beams in the 0.5 to 2.5 GeV/c momentum range. Besides complementary experiments in the nuclear matter program this opens up unprecedented possibilities in the field of medium-energy hadron physics.
• a detector test facility offering mixed electron, proton and pion beams.
• a high-intensity upgrade to gradually increase the beam intensities for all ions up to the SIS space charge limit. For ²³⁸U this intensity is 1.5×10¹¹ ions/burst for ²³⁸U²⁸⁺ and 2.2×10¹⁰ ions/burst for ²³⁸U⁷³⁺, while it is 1.4×10¹¹ ions/burst for fully-stripped ¹⁴N. Intense primary ¹⁴N-beams are mandatory for the secondary pion beam facility.

Access procedures

GSI is open to national and international user groups. To apply for access to the accelerator and experimental facilities, a written project proposal has to be submitted. The proposals are reviewed by one of GSI's international Program Advisory Committees, the GSI General Program Advisory Committee (G-PAC) or one of the sub-PAC for materials research, for biophysics and radiobiology or for PHELIX and plasma physics. If a user group in addition applies for EC support under one of the Integrated Infrastructure Initiatives of FP7, a separate funding application has to be submitted. This is reviewed by a User Selection Panel specific for HadronPhysics2.

The General PAC presently has 12 external members, with more than half of them coming from universities or research institutes outside Germany. The HadronPhysics2 User Selection Panel has as members the research director of GSI, the manager of the Access Project and 3 members of the G-PAC.

In a first round the G-PAC evaluates all of the submitted proposals on the basis of scientific merit and makes recommendations concerning the beamtime to be allocated to each project. In a second step the HadronPhysics2 User Selection Panel then reviews the funding applications. The panel evaluates the time and the amount of travel requested for setting up and executing the experiment and decides on the person-days and travel to be allocated to the proposal in question.

Beam time scheduling

Once a proposal has acquired the status of an accepted experiment, a GSI contact person (at least of postdoctoral level) is assigned to each external group. This contact person gives support in all practical aspects, including the beam time scheduling.

Beam time scheduling is managed by the GSI beam time coordinator. He acts in close contact with the users and their GSI contact person, with the accelerator division and with an internal GSI Round Table Committee that is responsible for coordinating the scientific and technical requirements connected with the use of the accelerator facilities. Requests for scheduling have to be made on a special form, the GSI Beam Time Scheduling Request. For electronic submission this form is available on the website Beam Time.

Support offered to users

Technical and logistic support

For research groups with approved experiments, beams and experimental facilities are provided free of charge. In addition, the support offered by GSI includes:

• office space and access to the GSI computing facilities;
• training courses and briefings on the general safety regulations at GSI and on the specific regulations at the experimental facilities;
• limited access to the GSI detector and target laboratories, as well as access to a maintained workshop for experimentalists and assistance from the GSI general mechanical shops;
• a Guest Office providing logistic support with regard to accommodation, travel and payments;
• lodging facilities: On site there is a guest house with 28 bed/office rooms, partly equipped with network cables for connection to the GSI computing facilities and to international data networks (registration at the GSI IT Dept. needed). Within walking distance from the institute, another lodging facility is available with 37 bedrooms. For long-term visitors, one guest house is available, with 9 fully-furnished apartments. For these appartments, which are located in Darmstadt (46 sqm - 82 sqm), reservations have to be made some time in advance.

Financial support within HadronPhysics2

Eligible research teams (so-called user groups) are composed of one or more researchers whose majority and user group leader conduct their research activity either in the EU Member States other than Germany or in one of the Associated States (the three candidate countries Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey and the five countries Iceland, Liechtenstein, Israel, Norway and Switzerland). They must be entitled to disseminate the knowledge generated under the project carried out at GSI. Their interest should lie in the field of hadron physics. If participating in a larger collaboration, the own scientific goals of the user group need to be stated clearly.

Financial support within the HadronPhysics2 Access Activity is on a per day basis and amounts to 70 Euro per day. If lodging at GSI is unavailable, actual hotel cost (without breakfast) are reimbursed plus a flat rate of 40 Euro per day for subsistence. Travel (and accomodation) expenses will be reimbursed (economy fares). The local administrative rules will be applied.

How to get your Access funding

After your arrival at GSI, please contact Mrs. S. Engel (Personnel Office, Room SB2 2.229, phone 2603) to settle the travel cost statement. The relevant rules/instructions can be found under: Travel Cost Instructions

Please use the form: Statement of Travel Cost

Deadlines

Submission of proposals

K.Fuesselgsi.de