Worldwide network of in-situ TEM/ion accelerator facilities

该提案的重点是建立一个正式的、全球性的原位TEM/离子加速器设施网络（TEMIAF），以便尝试以比迄今为止更有效的方式利用这一小而重要的全球资源。该提案的新重点是，其目的是形成一个网络，涉及与每个设施有关的早期研究人员，而不是高级工作人员。全世界有8个这样的（已知的）设施。该网络的初步建立将通过索尔福德PI和PDRA访问其他TEMIAF，与早期研究人员接触，并收集信息，重新评估每个设施的能力。请注意，主要研究者参与访问是为了促进初步接触，部分是通过他自己与TEMIAF高级工作人员的接触。这些设施使各种材料的样品能够用高能离子辐照，同时在透射电子显微镜中成像。这种方法可以提供显着的洞察力的基本方面的辐射损害的动态过程中，观察和记录，因为他们发生。原位研究还提供了非常显著的效率增益，因为一小时的视频记录的辐照实验可以等同于几周的非原位实验，其中样品在显微镜和显微镜之间重复转移。这些研究还使得有可能进行实验，其中样品在室温以外的温度下进行辐照和TEM分析。这通常是困难的或不可能的，其中离子辐照和显微镜检查顺序进行。这类研究对核反应堆材料（裂变和聚变）的辐射损伤、半导体加工和表面工程（使用离子束或等离子体）等领域作出了重要贡献。在核材料领域，在这些设施上进行的实验为进行理论模拟研究的研究人员提供了重要的数据，目前，各个设施（使用各种类型的显微镜和放大器）完全独立操作-无疑有时会导致设施的特性与特定实验所需的特性不匹配。该提案旨在建立一个早期研究人员网络和一个中央网站，以优化（全球）此类设施的使用，并寻求进一步的资助机会，使研究人员能够在成员实验室之间流动，并探索建立一个虚拟合作实验室的可能性，该实验室将允许使用互联网进行实时合作实验。

The focus of this proposal is to establish a formal, worldwide network of in-situ TEM/ion accelerator facilities (TEMIAFs) in order to attempt to use this small but important global resource in a much more effective manner than hitherto. The novel focus of the proposal is that the intention is to form a network involving the early-stage researchers associated with each facility rather than the senior staff. There are 8 such (known) facilities worldwide. The initial establishment of the network will be via visits by the Salford PI and PDRA to the other TEMIAFs to make contact with the early-stage researchers and to gather information regrading the capabilities of each facility. Note that the PI is involved in the visits in order to facilitate the initial contacts partially through his own contacts with senior TEMIAF staff.These facilities enable specimens of a variety of materials to be irradiated with energetic ions whilst simultaneously imaging in a transmission electron microscope. This approach can give remarkable insights into fundamental aspects of radiation damage in that dynamic processes are observed and recorded as they occur. In-situ studies also offer a very significant efficiency gain in that one hour of video-recorded irradiation experiment may be equivalent, literally, to weeks of ex-situ experiments in which specimens are transferred repeatedly between implanter and microscope. Such studies also make it possible to carry out experiments in which specimens are irradiated and analysed by TEM at temperatures other than room temperature. This is generally difficult or impossible where ion irradiation and microscopy take place sequentially. Studies of this type make important contributions to areas such as radiation damage in nuclear reactor materials (fission and fusion), semiconductor processing and surface engineering (using ion beams or plasmas). In the nuclear materials area, experiments on these facilities provide important data for researchers carrying out theoretical modelling studies.Currently, the individual facilities (which employ a variety of types of microscope and implanter) are operated entirely independently -- undoubtedly sometimes resulting in a mismatch between the characteristics of the facility and those required by a particular experiment. This proposal seeks to set up a network of early-stage resaerchers and a central website in order to optimise (globally) the use of such facilities and to seek further opportunities for funding to enable mobility of researchers amongst the member laboratories and explore the possibility of setting up a virtual collaboratory that would permit real-time collaborative experiments using the internet.