µ-VIS: Multidisciplinary, Multiscale, Microtomographic Volume Imaging

Scan request form

To submit an initial proposal or for more information, please fill out the form below. Comprehensive answers are encouraged but are not compulsory.

Your full name:

Your email address:

Your telephone number:

Company/School/Faculty

Project title (max. 20 words)

Funding body

Type of work (information on costing can be found here) Internal academic research External academic research Commercial investigation NXCT
Cost code (internal only):

Do you wish to use your µ-VIS licence for these scans? If you want to find more out about µ-VIS user licences, you can do so here (internal only). Please note that by requesting a licence rate scan, you agree to the terms and conditions listed on the Wiki.

Supervisors/other collaborators:

Deadline for experiment

Keywords

(up to 4, please do not include ‘X-ray’, ‘Computed Tomography’ etc.)

For internal academic jobs, µ-VIS will only pass the data to you or named supervisor(s) above; distribution to any other individuals will only occur with written agreement from any of the above-named persons.

Brief technical description (for non-specialist engineer/scientist), including review of any related/similar CT utilisation in the literature: (Max 200 words)

Previous X-ray/CT experience (Max 100 words)

Sample description (where known include materials/phases, densities, size/geometry, weight, ~100 words)

Sample mounting requirements - please also indicate here if you wish to use an in situ loading rig, and if so, which one

Sample safety requirements (chemical, biological, in-situ loading rig etc.) - Relevant COSHH form and risk assessment must be supplied if appropriate (Max 100 words)

Measurement requirements, including spatial resolution, and whether you wish to scan the complete sample, or a region of interest

Early and long term publishing expectations (early publication of first-of-kind results is encouraged, ~100 words)

Please enter URLs to your research group page and/or project pages/description if available

If you have used the µ-VIS facilities before, or other facilities which are also part of the NXCT, please say so below, giving details of any publications that have arisen as a result of your work with the centre

[Optional] Would you be happy for µ-VIS to use data from your CT scan? Appropriate acknowledgement would be given. µ-VIS would only use scan data for capability demonstrations, publicity material and general interest publications.

Please tick the boxes after reading the following to acknowledge and accept the conditions for this scanning work

[Required] Anything to be scanned should be safely and appropriately packaged with the owner's details clearly attached.

[Required] You must bring an empty, powered, NTFS-formatted, labelled, external hard disk with sufficient capacity to collect your data. A standard 1TB USB3 external drive is a good starting point.

[Required] Data will be stored by µ-VIS for up to one month. After this time it may be deleted so please ensure you have collected it by then

CT checklist

1. Whilst scan resolution can be controlled by a wide variety of sample and scanner considerations, an initial guideline for achievable resolution on a typical object is simply 1/2000 of the sample width. Higher resolution levels (below 5µm or image widths >2000 pixels) and/or scanning relatively dense materials (e.g. metals) often requires additional insight and it is particularly advisable to discuss with µ-VIS in advance to ensure expectations can be met.

2. The sample should be mechanically stable and stationary, both inside and out, for the duration of the scan. Scan durations vary from a few minutes to many hours. For most solid/rigid objects this is not an issue: samples containing liquid, visco-elastic, loose-packed powder or living material may require packing, physical support, cooling etc.

3. Wide density ranges may present additional challenges, e.g. the presence of metallic bolts, rods etc. in polymeric or biological materials. Such samples can be addressed, but for rapid, optimum image quality it is advisable to remove all unnecessary material within the region of interest in the sample.

4. If direct registration/orientation of internal and external locations is required, physical markers can simply be attached to the sample exterior (e.g. a small spot of epoxy, plasticine or a metal sphere), as written markings on samples may well be invisible in the CT data.

5. If the sample is to be kept within a container during scanning (e.g. to maintain moisture levels), it is best to minimise the density, thickness and external dimensions of the container. Simple polymer tubes/vials are ideal (e.g. see here). A conforming polymer wrap (cling film) can be ideal in self-supporting objects.

6. Samples MUST NOT shed any material (e.g. liquids or powder) into the CT equipment. If there is any risk, then some form of containment must be used (see point above).

7. Scan time includes time to mount sample and/or modify scanner configuration: as such, due consideration of sample size, mounting and environment requirements IN ADVANCE of your experiment is well worthwhile.

8. It is our intention to support more complex, extended scanning wherever possible. As such, scan time in any one full day is capped at 10 hours (i.e. providing 24 hours for the cost of 10). Furthermore, scanning that can can run from a Friday into a weekend (unattended) will only be charged as 20 hours, whilst actually providing up to 72 hours of beamtime. Such provision is inevitably subject to scheduling constraints.

9. Scanners and associated hardware are inevitably subject to breakdown on occasion. To address this, the µ-VIS machines are supported by a high-level maintenance contract, a degree of redundancy exists between the individual machines, and breakdown contingency periods are routinely scheduled. Additional scan time associated with breakdown will NOT be billed to users.

[Required] I have read and understood the CT checklist above