A meeting to explore the current science and potential of X-ray FEL was held on June 14th at Imperial College in London.

Previously uploaded talks can be view at the following link.

Talk on “Protein Nanocrystallography”
A PDF of the talk is available here in six parts,
Part1 , Part2 , Part3 , Part4 , Part5 and Part6.

Closing remarks from John Womersley
The closing remarks from John Womersley, Chief Executive, Science and Technology Facilities Council can be found at the following link.

The Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) Protein Crystal Screening (PCS) program will dedicate shifts at the CXI instrument during Run 9, April – July 2014. PCS proposals must be submitted by October 22 to be considered for beam time starting in spring of 2014.

The LCLS PCS program aims to enable new users to get their first access to LCLS beam time for biological structure determination and also to allow testing samples in preparation of a full LCLS proposal. Successful PCS proposals are expected to receive short allocations of beam time, limited to 6 hours.

To enable measurements within such a short time frame and maximize the chances of success and efficiency, these studies must be carried out with limited flexibility to minimize the time impact of setup changes. Currently, gas dynamic virtual nozzle (GDVN) experiments are possible at CXI and several possibilities for fixed targets can be explored within CXI. All PCS experiments are currently carried out inside the standard CXI vacuum setup using the 1um or 100nm focus and CSPAD detectors.
Time-resolved studies and spectroscopy are currently not within the possible scope of PCS beam time. We will carefully consider any proposed alternative setup allowing screening within the 6 hour time frame to extend the accessibility. Such alternative setups include all kinds of liquid jet modifications and sample mounting options, as long as such setups are available and have been demonstrated to work at the time of scheduling. The decision on whether a proposed alternative setup can be supported within the PCS program will be entirely at the discretion of LCLS staff scientists involved in the PCS program.

PCS proposals are submitted independently of regular LCLS proposals, and there are no restrictions with regard to the scope and/or possible overlap or redundancy with regular LCLS proposals. If the PCS proposal is related to one or more regular LCLS proposals that have been previously submitted or already received beam time, the team must state this in the proposal. PCS proposals will be reviewed by the PRP BIO panel separately from regular proposals.

PCS proposals are limited to a two-page PDF, including references and figures. PCS proposals must provide sufficient information to evaluate the impact, originality, need for LCLS, scientific risk, as well as technical feasibility. LCLS PCS proposals should be submitted through the user portal available here. PCS proposals will follow a similar format as regular proposals. The two-page PDF proposal should include a descriptive title of the proposed experiment that can be made public if beam time is awarded, and a brief abstract. All proposal team members should be identified. In the safety management portion, identify safety concerns that may arise with samples, procedures or equipment, e.g. any physical, chemical or biological hazards, and how these issues will be addressed in the experiment design.

Researchers interested in submitting PCS proposals for the CXI instrument should contact LCLS-CXI Scientist Marc Messerschmidt (mcmesser@SLAC.Stanford.EDU).

The proposal process and guidelines are described at the LCLS website.

LCLS PCS proposals must be submitted before 4 PM (Pacific) on Tuesday, October 22, 2013.

DPG Physics School on Free-electron X-ray Laser Physics
supported by the Wilhelm and Else Heraeus – Foundation
15 – 20 September, 2013, Physikzentrum Bad Honnef, Germany
Registration deadline 31st July 2013

More information of the conference and registration is available here

The advent of the first free-electron X-ray lasers, FLASH in 2004 and LCLS in 2009, may prove to be the most profound development since the invention of the laser and, equally, the synchrotron. Sharp improvements in a number of laser parameters, most notably intensity and pulse duration, support this expectation. This brings scientific dreams within reach, that have inspired scientists since decades: The spectrum ranges from nonlinear X-ray optics to X-ray structural analysis of individual macro molecules. Indeed, the unprecedented opportunities and expectations have triggered considerable investments and research activities worldwide. By the end of the decade, a dozen of X-ray laser facilities can be expected to be operational.

The School will bring together scientists who have played a leading role in developing and applying free-electron X-ray lasers. The primary goal is teaching the fundamentals of free-electron laser to young scientists and providing them with an overview of the present status X-ray free-electron laser science.

Subjects:
• Fundamentals of X-ray physics
• Fundamentals of free-electron lasers
• Status and prospects of X-ray laser physics
• Interaction with matter
• Coherent imaging

Confirmed Speakers:
• Rafael Abela (Paul Scherrer Institute)
• Louis DiMauro (The Ohio State University)
• Roger Falcone (Berkeley)
• Josef Feldhaus (DESY)
• Gianluca Geloni (European XFEL)
• Tetsuya Ishikawa (RIKEN SPring-8)
• Franz Kärtner (DESY)
• Jens Limpert (Friedrich Schiller University Jena)
• Ralf Röhlsberger (DESY)
• Nina Rohringer (DESY)
• Jörg Rossbach (DESY)
• Ilme Schlichting (MPI Heidelberg)
• Klaus Sokolowski-Tinten (University of Duisburg-Essen)
• Peter Schmüser (DESY)
• Christian Schroer (TU Dresden)
• Joachim Ullrich (PTB Braunschweig)

Organized by Gerhard Paulus (University Jena), Edgar Weckert (DESY, Hamburg) and Ulf Zastrau (University Jena)