National Academy of Sciences

National Academy of Engineering

Institute of Medicine

National Research Council

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.

The Committee on Developing a Federal Materials Facilities Strategy was appointed by the National Research Council (NRC) in response to a request by the federal agencies involved in funding and operating multidisciplinary user facilities for research with synchrotron radiation, neutrons, and high magnetic fields. Starting in August 1996, a series of conversations and meetings was held among NRC staff and officials from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (Department of Commerce), and the National Institutes of Health. The agencies were concerned that facilities originally developed to support research in materials science were increasingly used by scientists from other fields—particularly the biological sciences—whose research was supported by agencies other than those responsible for the facilities. This trend, together with the introduction of several new, large user facilities in the last decade, led the agencies to seek advice on the possible need for interagency cooperation in the management of these federal research facilities.

The committee members (see Appendix A for biographical sketches), selected for their breadth of knowledge and experience in the conduct and management of research involving user facilities, as well as experience in managing large facilities and familiarity with the federal budget process, have conducted research at all of the federal user facilities discussed in this report and at many of the international ones. The committee was asked to explore possible strategies to address changing user demographics for synchrotron, neutron, and high-magnetic-field facilities owing to the changing nature of the science conducted and

how this might affect the roles of federal agencies in supporting these facilities. (See Appendix B for the statement of task.)

The committee chose to focus its report on the issues of planning, operating, and funding facilities at the federal level and did not attempt to duplicate previous reports that have evaluated the state of the individual facilities or the research they support (BESAC, 1997, 1998). The committee did, however, study these reports as background for its work. The committee hopes that the federal agencies will be able to use this report to enhance the stability, efficiency, and effectiveness of existing and new user facilities.

The committee solicited input from the scientific community and heard stakeholders’ concerns on the relevant issues. It also received a number of briefings (see Appendix C) from varied sources. The committee is grateful to the individuals who provided technical information and insight during these briefings. This information helped provide a sound foundation for the committee ’s work.

This study was conducted under the auspices of the NRC’s Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics, and Applications and was administered by the staff of its Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology in cooperation with that of the Board on Physics and Astronomy. The chair is particularly grateful to the members of this committee, who worked diligently and effectively on a demanding schedule to produce this report.

Support for the study was provided by the interested agencies through the National Science Foundation.

John J. Wise, Chair

Committee on Developing a Federal Materials Facilities Strategy

This report has been reviewed by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the authors and the NRC in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The contents of the review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their participation in the review of this report:

Gabriel Aeppli, NEC Research Institute,

Frank Bates, University of Minnesota,

Boris Batterman, Cornell University,

Dean Eastman, University of Chicago,

Jack Fellows, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research,

Paul Gilman, Celera Genomics,

W. Carl Lineberger, University of Colorado,

Gilbert Marguth, Department of Commerce,

Manuel A. Navia, Althexis Company, Inc.,

Maxine Savitz, Allied-Signal Ceramic Corporation, and

Janet Smith, Purdue University.

Although the individuals listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, responsibility for the final content of this report rests solely with the authoring committee and the NRC.