Operation of the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory at Michigan State University as a National User Facility & Support for its Research Program

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

Principal Investigator: C.-K. Gelbke Award Number: PHY-0606007 This award provides funds to operate the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory (NSCL) at Michigan State University as a national user facility, to support MSU faculty and staff research in nuclear physics, nuclear chemistry, astro-nuclear physics, accelerator physics, and instrumentation development, and to continue serving as a center dedicated to the training of the next generation of scientists in these disciplines. The award will allow the NSCL to continue its nationally and internationally prominent leadership role in these areas by operating as the nation's premier user facility dedicated to the production and study of rare (short-lived) isotopes. The 2002 Long-Range Plan of the NSF/DOE Nuclear Science Advisory Committee (NSAC) emphasizes the importance of NSCL operations in its highest priority recommendation and stresses in its second highest priority that the exciting new scientific opportunities offered by research with rare isotopes are compelling. NSAC reaffirmed these priorities in its 2005 report "Guidance for Implementing the 2002 Long Range Plan". Major areas of high scientific and technical thrust that will be addressed by the supported research include: the exploration of nuclei with unusual ratios of protons to-neutrons and the measurement of their properties, the exploration of the nuclear processes that are responsible for the chemical evolution of the universe through the ongoing synthesis of most elements in the cosmos, the exploration of the isospin-dependent properties of hot nuclear matter and how they affect neutron star properties, the development of new instruments and innovative new techniques that will further enhance the scientific reach of the facility, the exploration and tests of novel superconducting accelerator and beam transport concepts and the dynamics of high-intensity beams. The NSCL is a university-based national user facility serving a user community of 700 registered users. Proposals for beam time are evaluated according to feasibility and scientific merit by a seven-member program advisory committee consisting of six internationally established experts from other institutions and one MSU faculty member. The NSCL plays a prominent role in the education of the next generation of scientists through a close synergy of class-room education and hands-on laboratory research throughout the entire graduate career. US World and News report ranks the MSU nuclear physics graduate program as #2 in the nation (behind MIT). Currently, some 50 graduate students are employed at the NSCL and work on their thesis research.