NECAT Beamline

The Northeastern Collaborative Access Team (NE-CAT) facility at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory is managed by Cornell University and consists of seven member institutions:

  • Columbia University
  • Cornell University
  • Harvard University
  • Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Rockefeller University
  • Yale University.

    • Primary funding for this project comes from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Additional financial support for NE-CAT comes from the member institutions.

    Status of NE-CAT Construction Project

    January 2006

    Commissioning of the 24-ID Beam Line:

    APS accelerator operations were shut down for the entire month of January for scheduled maintenance. Preceding the shutdown, the beam line was fully scheduled by institutional users and all reported successful runs. The Construction Team took advantage of the month long shut down to conduct preventive maintenance work on the beam line as well as install several upgrades in advance of resumption of user operations on February 1.

    In order to better meet the users’ needs to image even smaller, ~10 micron, crystals, several upgrades to the imaging long-range microscopes were made. Higher-resolution monitors were added at the control console ( see pic). Also, users will now be able to perform fine adjustments to the focus remotely from the control area. Digital zoom features have implemented with the cameras. We are also testing a mirror system installed in the high-resolution camera so that users can easily switch between two fields of view differing in magnification by a factor of four to more easily center the crystals into the field of view at the highest resolution

    At the users’ requests, we have installed a finer range of absorbers to provide a finer control of beam intensity onto the crystals.

    Software upgrades have been completed to facilitate automated energy changes. This new software will be tested early in February, upon resumption of beam line operations.

    Although the 14 TB data storage system, operated flawlessly during the previous run under a NFS operating system we have now installed GPFS to provide better management tools, and faster response from the clients and further improve reliability and maintenance..

    The latest version of HKL has now be implemented on all the computers in the Phase 1 control area as well as the common user area.

    The common user area has now been outfitted with computers, a combination printer-FAX, and creature comforts such as a sofa, refrigerator, hot and cold water dispenser, etc. so users can both off-line and on-line analyze and archive their data as well as relax, before, during, or after their experiments.

    Kohzu technicians corrected several design errors in the Phase 1 monochromator. The gear ratio on the roll motion of the second crystal was increased to make that motion more reliable and they installed a retaining assembly to secure a bearing, which in its previous configuration, could drop out during a user run, resulting in a serious outage of the beam line until repairs could be made.

     

    Phase 2, 24-ID Side Bounce Station Beam Line

    We achieved a major milestone with the delivery of the Phase 2 monochromator from Oxford-Danfysik ( see pic). Delivery of this monochromator was critical because none of the hardware that has been on hand for many months could be installed before installation of the monochromator. A picture taken at the Oxford-Danfysik plant shortly before shipment shows the interior of the monochromator with the two crystal mounts and extensive liquid nitrogen plumbing. Unfortunately, Oxford-Danfysik missed its original shipment schedule of Fall 2005 and the actual delivery missed the window of opportunity to install the monochromator during the APS scheduled January shutdown period. Therefore installation of the monochromator and installation of all the rest of the instrumentation must wait until the next scheduled shutdown period in May. At the time of writing this progress report, we have begun testing the monochromator. A vacuum leak was detected in the tank cover, which an experienced welder from the Laboratory’s Central Shops has repaired. The monochromator is now undergoing vacuum conditioning and further leak testing. If no additional vacuum problems are uncovered, the motions will be tested, crystals installed, and the entire system tested under liquid nitrogen flow.

    Phase 3, 24-BM Bending Magnet Beamline

    Construction of the 24-BM radiation Enclosures is rapidly proceeding on schedule. This photograph shows a view of the top of the enclosures with all the major steel-clad lead vertical and roof panels installed. As can be seen from the next photograph, the millwrights had to build these enclosures within very close quarters, having literally inches to spare for moving their heavy lifting equipment between the existing Sectors 23 and 24 enclosures. Installation of the cranes, painting, and installation of the utilities is scheduled to be completed by March14.

     

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