National Nuclear Laboratory

Electron optics

NNL’s FIB-SEM, X-ray CT and 200kV (S)TEM are available for access during the period covered by the 12th NNUF user access call (for access in the period July – December 2023). It is expected that the 200kV aberration-corrected FEG-TEM will become available, following commissioning, during the period of the call.

Please do reach out to the NNL team, to discuss access to the microscopes detailed above, at any point.  

Hot Robotics

The Hot Robotics Facility (including the "node" at NNL's Workington Laboratory) is also participating in the  12th NNUF access scheme call (for access in the period July – December 2023). Please see the Hot Robotics page of the NNUF website for further information.

NNUF funded user access scheme - for NNL’s “nuclear fuel and recycle” call (FY 20/21)

The NNUF funded user access scheme is open to UK-based university researchers (and employees of other organizations eligible to apply for UKRI funding) who are using RCUK-funded equipment as part of their research. NNL are not charging facility access fees for peer-reviewed academic research awarded as part of their “nuclear fuel and recycle” call, but there may be other costs associated with your time at NNL (namely sample transport and T&S) for which you may like to apply for NNUF support.

Workflow to follow

1. Apply directly to NNL for access, following the instructions in their call document. (N.B. This call has now closed).

2. In order to avoid multiple levels of scrutiny of your proposed work, and recognising that NNL rigorously peer-review proposals, if you have been awarded access by NNL for research which involves RCUK-funded equipment, it is expected that reasonable costs (as agreed in advance with NNUF) for sample transport and/or T&S for academics undertaking on-site experimental work at NNL will be funded by NNUF without requiring a separate application. In order to arrange this funding:

• as soon as possible, please forward to Francesca McGowan, NNUF Administrator (francesca.mcgowan@materials.ox.ac.uk) the email you receive from NNL granting you access, explaining clearly what type of costs (sample transport, T&S etc.) you are requesting be reimbursed.

• please include, with this email, an estimate/quote of expenses that you would anticipate claiming from the NNUF funded user access scheme. Please ensure that any travel and subsistence costs estimated or claimed are in line with standard EPSRC travel guidelines. Once NNUF has confirmed that these costs are reasonable, you can go ahead and spend this money.

3. Once your access has been completed, you will need to send receipts for expenses to francesca.mcgowan@materials.ox.ac.uk, who will reimburse these funds to your institution.

After your time at NNL 

Please note that after you have completed your access you will be asked, as a condition of receiving funding from the NNUF access scheme, to: 

•    Complete a feedback form detailing the research undertaken, the number of days for which you used the facility, how many members of your research team took part in the experiment etc.
•    Cite NNUF in any publications, reports, patents or other “outputs” which result from your research, and notify the NNUF Management Group (by emailing francesca.mcgowan@materials.ox.ac.uk) when any such “outputs” occur. This is in addition to acknowledging NNL in the normal way. Please respond in a timely manner to enquiries from the NNUF Management Group on these matters, as this information is required for our reporting to EPSRC and the UK government. 

Further information

In relation to the NNL call itself, please contact access.liaison@uknnl.com.
  
Please do feel free to contact Francesca McGowan, NNUF Administrator (francesca.mcgowan@materials.ox.ac.uk) if you have any questions about the NNUF funding process – we would be more than happy to help and advise.