S.02-52
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
Senate Committee on University Priorities
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Memorandum
TO:
Senate FROM: John Waterhc
Chair, SCUP
Vice Presider
RE:
BC Synchrotron Institute (BCSI)
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DATE:
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June 17, 2002
Attached is the proposal for the establishment of the BC Synchrotron Institute (BCSI)
submitted for consideration by Dr. Cohn Jones. This will be a Schedule B Institute
reporting to the Vice President, Research in accordance with Policy R 40.01.
The Senate Committee on University Priorities reviewed the proposal at its June 12,
2002 meeting. The proposal was unanimously approved. Once approved by Senate,
the proposal will be submitted to the Board of Governors.
Motion:
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That Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the establishment
of the BC Synchrotron Institute (BCSI) as outlined in document
S02-52
end.
c. B. Clayman, VP Research
C. Jones, Faculty of Science
SCUP 02-89
SIMON FRASER UNIV.
MEMORANDUM ?
OFFICE OF VICE-PRESIDENT, RESEARCH
TO: Laurie Sirtirers, secretary
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FROM: Bruce P. Clayman
Senate Committee on University
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Vice-President, Research
Planning (SCUP)
RE:
B.C. Synchrotron Institute (BCSI)
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DATE: April 12, 2002
Attached is a proposal from Dr. Cohn Jones for the establishment of the B C.
Synchrotron Institute (BCSI) as a Schedule B Institute (centres or institutes that have a
University-wide mandate) under the direct authority of the Vice-President, Research.
The Governing Committee for Centres and Institutes recommends that the
Institute be granted approval by SCUP. Once approved by SCUP, the proposal is to be
forwarded to Senate, followed by submission to the Board of Governors.
Committee:
John H. Waterhouse'
:e-President, Academic and Provost
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Dr. Bruce P. Claymad
Vice-President, Research
Attachment
c: ?
C. Jones
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The BC Synchrotron Institute
January 24th. 2002
Introduction
The Canadian Light Source (CLS) is presently under construction at the University of
Saskatchewan in Saskatoon and will be commissioned in 2003 and opened for use in 2004. The CLS,
constructed at a cost of $173 million, will be operated as a National Laboratory and will be Canada's
only source of synchrotron radiation. Funding for the construction of CLS has come from a range of
agencies, including CFI, the Provinces of Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario, Western Economic
Diversification, the University of Saskatchewan and the private sector in Saskatchewan.
The CLS is built around an electron accelerator in which electrons, accelerated to 2.9 GeV and
moving at 99.999 percent of the speed of light, are bent through magnetic fields and are thereby
induced to emit synchrotron radiation. This electromagnetic radiation is of remarkably high intensity,
spanning the electromagnetic spectrum from the infra-red through to hard x-rays. The intensity of
these beams of radiation, coupled with the range of wavelengths accessible and the coherence of the
beams, make synchrotron radiation sources exceptionally versatile, if not unique, tools.
The applications of synchrotron radiation as a research and analytical tool and as a development
tool in industry can be illustrated with reference to a number of examples:
It is possible, employing the high intensity of synchrotron x-rays, to rapidly determine
the molecular structures of proteins and other biological macromolecules, even on very
small crystals-This ready access to molecular structures will be vital in the field of
proteomics, which is on the brink of a revolution which will further transform our
understanding of life-processes. In addition to fundamental research, these techniques
will have dramatic implications for the pharmaceutical industry and the rational design of
new drugs.
Synchrotron radiation makes available a wide range of sophisticated techniques for the
study of advanced materials. New techniques based on resonant soft x ray scattering will
make it possible to investigate the structure and electronic properties of Ultra thin films of
both or
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anic and inorganic materials. Such materials find application in nanostructured
devices, in spin electronics, and photonics. Other advanced materials under investigation
will span the ran
g
e from semiconductors and superconductors to polymer membranes for
the hydrogen fuel-cell. These investigations will not only add to our knowledge of their
fundamental structure, but will help guide the discovery and synthesis of new materials,
which will, in turn, become the foundation of new technologies of the future.
The measurement of trace elements in environmental and biological samples, together
with the identification of their chemical form, represents another forefront application of
synchrotron radiation. These techniques will find many unique applications in the field
of Environmental Science, with importance in the mining, forestry and agricultural
industries.
Other fields where major advances can be expected include Earth Sciences, Geology,
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Engineering, Lithography , the fabrication of Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS). and Medical
Imaging.
There are a number of research groups within the B.C. universities which have been actively
engaged in forefront synchrotron research at international facilities for some years and are leaders in
the field in Canada. There are currently research programs at the National Synchrotron Light Source at
Brookhaven, the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne, the Advanced Light Source at Berkeley. the
Synchrotron Radiation Centre in Wisconsin, the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in France,
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Spring 8 in Japan and DESY in Germany. These continuing programs provide an exceptionally strong
base within B.C. for such research, a base which will be of considerable value to the CLS when it
opens in 2004.
The Importance of Synchrotron Radiation Studies for British Columbia
The universities, the high technology companies and other components of the BC industrial
sector all stand to benefit from access to, and an active participation in. the CLS and other synchrotron
facilities. Currently some 40 or so individual researchers at UBC, UVictoria, SFU and LJNBC have
been identified as having keen interests in performing some aspects of their research at the CLS. This
number will undoubtedly grow over the next several months. The potential for application in the BC
private sector is also considerable and we anticipate many companies in the high technology,
environmental, engineering and resource-based industries to become active users of the CLS. The
federal and provincial science-based laboratories in B.C. , including those in the hospitals, represent
another important group of potential users.
The benefits of CLS to the B.C. universities can be seen as:
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Access to forefront, innovative techniques, competitive with those available in other
leading industrial nations, which will enrich research in materials sciences; in molecular
biology, pharmacy and medicine; in environmental science; and in engineering, mining,
forestry and agriculture.
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Access to the CLS will help attract top international talent to faculty positions in the B.C.
universities in selected areas of science, engineering and medicine.
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Graduate training in Canada at a world-class, international facility, exposing graduate
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students to the latest developments in fast developing fields of research and providing the
opportunity for collaborations with researchers from other countries.
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A scientific venue that will bring together university and industry researchers who share
an interest in common scientific problems. The relationship between the field of
structural biology and the pharmaceutical/biotechnology companies is an excellent
example.
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The CLS will provide contingent laboratory space to researchers, thereby enhancing the
space available to B.C. at no cost to the universities.
In order for BC to benefit to the fullest extent from CLS, we must be prepared to inform and
advise our researchers across the Province of the opportunities that the CLS will present and to assist
in coordinating their proposed participation at the CLS. It will also be critically important for B.C. to
provide financial support towards the CLS bean-dines. Ontario and Alberta have each committed $9
million of provincial funding to CLS and Quebec and Manitoba are now poised to make similar
contributions.
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The British Columbia Synchrotron Institute
i)
This Institute will have members drawn from:
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UBC, UVictoria, SFU and UNBC.
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B.C. Companies
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The Federal and Provincial Government Laboratories in B.C.
ii)
The Institute will have as its mandate:
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To inform the academic, industrial and government laboratory communities of the range
of opportunities that exist through synchrotron radiation studies. This will be done
through workshops, symposia and conferences, as well as through demonstration
projects arranged at existing synchrotron facilities.
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To act in a coordinating role in assisting researchers, drawn from many different
disciplines and areas of specialization across the B.C. universities, from government
laboratories and from industry, in their use of synchrotron radiation.
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To represent B.C. in discussions with the CLS, as a national laboratory, relating to
access to facilities; to participate in the activities of the Canadian Institute for Synchrotron
Radiation; and to raise B.C.'s profile nationally in this area of research and development.
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To assist in preparing B.C. applications for funding for facilities and equipment from
agencies such as CR. In particular, an application to CFI in Fall 2002 for funding for
two beamlines in areas of direct interest to B.C. researchers is proposed. CH
applications will be submitted through one of the member universities.
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To conduct a study of the potential economic impact on BC of our participation at the
CLS.
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Funding for the Institute will be obtained initially from the universities, from the Provincial
Government and from Western Economic Diversification. The Institute will explore avenues
for continuing funding from a variety of sources.
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In terms of governance, the Institute will have:
A Board with ten members drawn from the B.C. universities (5), the business
community (3), the BC Provincial Government (1) and the Federal Government (1).
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A Scientific Advisory Committee with members drawn from the universities, business
and the government laboratories. The SAC will assist in the development of the CFI
applications and other applications for funding of scientific projects.
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A Program Coordinating Committee to assist in the organization of workshops, symposia
and conferences.
V)
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The BCSI will be established as an Institute at each of the participating universities and will be
formally bound together as a common Institute through a MOU approved by each Institution.
UBC will act as the administrative center for the Institute and will assist in the administration of
funds to operate the Institute and grant funds awarded to BCSI. The Faculty of Science at UBC
will be the host Faculty.
vi)
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Each of the universities will have a Site Director, selected by and from the members at that
university, to assist in the coordination of the activities of the Institute at the different
universities. The Institute will be a Schedule B Institute and will conduct itself in accordance
with the Policies of the universities.
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Founding members of the BCSI at Simon Fraser University, all of whom who have
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agreed to be members, and their research interests relevant to the CLS.
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March II, 2002
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1.
Barbara Frisken, Physics
Membranes - small Angle X-Ray Scattering (SAXS)
2.
Steve Holdcroft, Chemistry
Fuel Cell Materials - SAXS.
3.
Jennifer Thewalt, Physics/Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
Skin Structure - SAXS, X-Ray Diffraction
4.
Frederic Pio, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
Protein Crystallography - X-Ray Diffraction, EXAFS
5.
Robert F. Frindt, Physics
Layered Materials - X-Ray Diffraction, EXAFS
6.
Ross Hill, Chemistry
Thin Film Characterization - X-Ray Diffraction
7.
Karen L. Kavanagh, Physics and Engineering Sciences
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Semiconductor Interfaces - X-Ray Diffraction, EXAFS, X-Ray Reflectivity
8.
Leah Bendell-Young, Biological Sciences
Environmental Toxins - X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure Spectroscopy (XAFS)
9.
Margo Moore, Biological Sciences
Environmental Toxins - XAFS
10.
Steven Dodge, Physics
IR scattering
11.
Bret Heinrich, Physics
Magnetic materials
12.
Simon Watkins, Physics
Semiconductor Alloys - XAFS, X-Ray Standing Wave
13.
Gary Leach, Chemistry
Thins films and interfaces - IR, X-ray SpectromicroscoPy, ultrafast X-ray scattering
14.
Daryl Crozier, Physics
Structure and Electronic Properties of Materials EXAFS
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15. Zuo Ye, Chemistry
Inorganic Materials Piezoelectric, ferroelectric materials
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Daniel Leznoff, Chemistry
Molecular Magnetic Materials, Paramagnetic Organometallic Complexes
17.
Erika Plettner, Chemistry
BioOrganic Chemistry - P450, Pheromone Biochemistry
18.
Mark PaetzeL, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
Crystallographic analysis of protein targeting and translocation
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W.A.C. Bennett Library
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Simon Fraser University
Memorandum
To: Barb Ralph, Administrative Assistant
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From:
Todd M. Mundle
Office of the Vice President, Research
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Associate University Librarian
tmundle@sfli.ca
Subject:
Library Report for the proposed
SFU BC Synchrotron Institute (BCSI)
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Date: April 11, 2002
Cc:
Lynn Copeland, University Librarian
Gwen Bird, Head, Collections Management
Marjorie Nelles, Liaison Librarian for Physics
Here is the Library Report regarding the proposed BC Synchrotron Institute (BCSI) located at SFU.
I've read over the proposal for the BCSI and I am satisfied that the Library can support this Institute at
this time. There are no current outstanding issues but as with all Institutes there may be future hiring of
faculty with specific interests outside the current scope of the proposed BCSI.
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When hiring such individuals it is important to compare the compatibility of their research interests
with existing Library resources. If a mismatch is determined and new resources are required the BCSI
will have to provide funding to purchase such library resources. This is a general concern regarding
new hires and not specific to the BCSI.
Costs:
THERE ARE NO ADDITIONAL LIBRARY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH STARTING THIS
INSTITUTE.
If you have any questions regarding this report, please don't hesitate to contact me by phone (3266) or
by email, tmundle@sfu.ca .