Experimental lifecycle

Between October and December of any given year, researchers may submit applications through LaserNetUS during the annual call for proposals. Exact dates may vary from year to year; reference the LaserNetUS proposal webpage for important dates and key deadlines.

In March/April of the following year, applicants receive a notification regarding the status of their proposal. At this time, researchers with accepted proposals have the opportunity to schedule their experiment—experiments are scheduled anywhere from September to the following September.

The JLF team conducts a virtual user readiness review with the experimental team 12 weeks prior to the experiment. This meeting helps the JLF team assess and prepare for any experimental needs that may arise.

All approved scientific and technical work must be performed as scheduled in the JLF calendar. For each experiment, only those who have been approved in the experimental team registration, which is posted in each target area, are permitted to participate.

For the duration of the experiment, at least one representative of the experimental team is expected to attend the JLF “daily plan of the day” meeting (hybrid at 8:30 a.m.) to inform the facility about their activities for the day. The JLF administrator adds representatives to the meeting invite after they are registered as users.

Every experimental team is required to attend a post-experiment debrief within one week of their experiment’s completion. This debrief helps the JLF Operations Team evaluate ways the facility can improve its capabilities and overall communication with users.

At the end of the year, each team must also submit a one-page summary of their experiment for inclusion in the JLF annual report. All summaries from the previous experimental phase (September–September) must be turned in to the JLF Director by January 15 (date subject to change from year-to-year) of the following year.