Applications for access to the Octopus or Ultra facilities of the Central Laser Facility (CLF) between 1st July and 31st December 2025 opened on 21st November 2024. If successful, access will be fully funded (facility overheads, UK travel, accommodation and food).
Proposal submission will close on Thursday 23rd January 2025 17:00 UK time, no submissions will be accepted after this time.
NOTE: Calls for proposals usually run for 8 weeks every 6 months starting in May or November for access in the second or first half of the year, respectively. I.e. May applications are for Jan-June the following year, and November applications for July-Dec the following year. Applicants will usually hear about the outcomes within 3 months of submission.
Types of Access
For this call, proposals are invited for the following modes of access:
- Direct (1-4 weeks one-off access)
- New Programme (1-4 weeks access within a 6-month period for 2 to 5 years)
- Continuation of Approved Programmes (update on progress for the next 6 months)
Eligibility
- The main applicant must be a UK academic (including postdoctoral researcher)
- The main applicant must hold a position that lasts for the duration of the scheduling period
- PhD students can be Co-Investigator, but not the main applicant
Guidelines
Please carefully read all the information in the call guidelines 
2025_2_LSF_Submission_guidelines.pdf and use the formatted template documents: 
Direct_Access_template.docx, New_Programme_template.docx, Programme_Approved_template.docx which follow the formatting guidelines.
It is recommended to contact an appropriate facility staff member ahead of time to help strengthen your application (e.g. obtaining proof of concept data, technical feasibility), see the web pages for Octopus staff and techniques, and Ultra staff and techniques to find an appropriate contact for your proposal.
Submission
Please submit all applications to https://proposal.facilities.rl.ac.uk. If it is the first time you've used the online submission system, you may find it useful to read the documentation
here.
For any queries about using the proposal system that are not answered by the documentation above, contact fase-support@stfc.ac.uk.
NOTE: It is recommended to start submission early, as your progress can be saved. Submission includes completion of multiple pages of questions relating to your access, as well as the attachment of a scientific case.
Facility Access Panel
A list of the current Octopus and Ultra Facility Access Panel members can be
found here.
Alternative Access Routes
If you are not eligible, or need access before the next round. Please contact us to discuss alternative routes.
The CLF are participants in an Horizon Europe project: Research Infrastructure Access in Nanoscience & Nanotechnology (RIANA). There will be a call to fund access to multi-facility projects (including CLF facilities) to study materials which have a functional component in the nanometer scale (<200 nm). The application details can be found here RIANA – Research Infrastructure Access in NAnoscience & nanotechnology (riana-project.eu). If you are interested in this call please contact Andy Ward (andy.ward@stfc.ac.uk) to discuss access options.
For industry, or academics collaborating with industry, there may be multiple other routes open to you. Here are schemes that may have updated calls:
