Policies

• FOM website:
  1.  STOP–Go To https://fom.rice.edu/fom  and begin creating an account.  You must enter your financial information (fund#-organization #) before your account is confirmed and activated.  Be sure you know this information.  You will be directed to this page when you are creating your account on FOM.  GO THERE NOW AND BEGIN CREATING YOUR ACCOUNT.  If you are coming to this page from FOM, go to step 2.
  
  2.  Welcome back!  Please complete the forms at the bottom of this page and email them to SEA at sharedequipauth@rice.edu. Go back to FOM and finish creating your account.
  
  Account activation - Once you created your FOM account, including financial information, and submitted your completed forms, your account will be activated
  
  Request training – This is done in FOM and this can be done after your account is activated.  Once your account is activated, go to your "User Home" page in FOM.  Select an instrument on the right hand side.  Indicate the times that you would be available for training.  This action will generate an email to the instrument manager.  They will be in contact with you  to schedule a training time.  Please note: You must have an activated FOM account and SEA paperwork authorizing you to use the equipment that you are requesting training for before you can schedule and be trained.

• Note: EHS lab safety training required!

• This is the page that EHS has about safety training (the policy we follow): https://safety.rice.edu/training

• The is the EHS page that lists the upcoming trainings (most useful for our prospective users): https://safety.rice.edu/training/schedule-and-registration

Instrument Use and Training

1. Submit training requests through FOM

2. You may only use equipment after you have been approved by staff

Reserve equipment before use

1. Log In to FOM session before operation

2. Log out when you are done

3. Record usage data where applicable

4. Always follow standard operating procedures (SOP)

Problems will arise

• When they do, stop what you are doing

• Do NOT attempt to fix problems on your own

• Report the problem to SEA staff with detailed information,

• Call/text if necessary, Cell phone: 832-998-1280

• We would rather you use our time and attention than break the equipment

• Staff has the right to require extra training sessions

• Users will have access only to the backmount and topmount sample holders. The use of other accessories such as the heating/cooling sample holder, the rotation sample holder, the transfer vessel and cantilever holder sample holders will be allowed only under the supervision by the Rice SIMS Lab staff.

• The scanning probe microscope (SPM) will be available to users through with the support of the SIMS lab staff. If required, the analysis can be performed before and/or after SIMS analysis on the region(s) of interest. Please consult Rice SIMS Facility staff to discuss SPM measurements.

• Rice SIMS Lab provides a cleaving kit and sample preparation area. The users must keep the sample preparation area clean and immediately report any issues or problems such as damaged tools.

• Staff-assisted reservations on the ToF-SIMS instrument should be booked a minimum of 3 working days before the date.

• Any request for analysis to be done by the Rice SIMS Lab staff should be submitted a minimum of 1 week before the date needed.

• Try to be sure that no other events will impede you in the use of the instrument at the date. Repeated last-minute cancellations are problematic, and may lead to loss of access privileges.

• Collaborations are available on a limited basis, and only at the discretion of Rice SIMS Facility staff.

• Users are encouraged to treat their own data. To improve Users’ understanding of data analysis of the ToF-SIMS acquisitions, different software seminars will be proposed every 3-6 months.

• Data treatment performed by Rice SIMS Lab staff typically takes a minimum of 2 weeks following data acquisition; please plan your experiments and publication submissions accordingly.

• Manuscripts resulting from collaborative work must be approved by Rice SIMS Lab staff prior to final submission, to ensure the quality of the SIMS data.

• Please add us to your acknowledgement section of your communications if you use SEA facilities and/or instrumentation:

• Example: “This work conducted in part using resources of the Shared Equipment Authority at Rice University.”

• This practice enables more successful grant applications for future research funding at Rice, especially for proposals involving shared instrumentation.

• Must include the phrase: “Shared Equipment Authority at Rice University”

• The instrument is supported by the National Science Foundation (CBET-1626418). All users are required to acknowledge the NSF in any publications that make use of the ToF SIMS. The following text can be used:

• “ToF-SIMS analysis were carried out with support provided by the National Science Foundation CBET-1626418 and the Shared Equipment Authority at Rice University.”

• Affiliation Tanguy Terlier1,2,3

1: Rice University, Shared Equipment Authority, SIMS laboratory, 6100 Main Street, 77005 Houston Texas, United States.

2: Rice University, Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, 6100 Main Street, 77005 Houston Texas, United States.

3: Rice University, Rice Advanced Material Institute, 6100 Main Street, 77005 Houston Texas, United States.

A few computers for data analysis is available to all users of the Rice SIMS facility. The computer can be reserved in the SIMS calendar, and assistance with data analysis is available from the SIMS staff for free. See below for rates and policies on different types of SIMS use, collaboration, and service.

Note: The instrument is also dedicated to the education as academic experience instrument for classes & courses

Rice SIMS Facility Fee for Usage, Service & Training

• Internal, Rice University: $50/hr. (+ $70/hr. in fee-for-service) / training: $120/hr.

• External, Non-profit (Academic): $78.25/hr. (+ $110/hr. in fee-for-service) / training: $188.25/hr.

• External, For-profit (Industry): $250/hr. (+ $120/hr. in fee-for-service) / training: $575/hr.

TRAINED USER ACCESS AND COLLABORATIVE USE: This rate applies to users who have been trained to work independently on the instrument (see below) and users who collaborate with the SIMS facility staff. Trained users must be authorized by SIMS facility to work independently. In collaborative use, the SIMS staff will assist with all aspects of SIMS and SPM analysis, including sample loading and mounting, SIMS analysis, SPM analysis, and data interpretation. Users who which to work collaboratively and agree to the collaborative rate should list the SIMS staff (Tanguy Terlier) as a co-author on all publications that incorporate SIMS data.

SERVICE: Rice facility fee for service includes sample mounting, transfer of the sample holder under Ultra-High Vacuum chamber and ToF-SIMS analysis. Basic interpretation of the data will be provided, i.e., mass calibration, intensity of the major compounds, and depth profiles or mappings of the major compounds. Advanced data treatment can also be provided for additional service charges.

TRAINING: The training fee can be split between multiple participants who are trained in a single session. A maximum of three people per group will be allowed. Three different levels of training are offered:

• The basic level is 4 hours of training, including a detailed introduction of the ToF-SIMS technique and about 2 hours of practice on the spectrometry and imaging.

• The advanced level is about 8 hours of training. Beyond the basic training, the advanced session includes about 2 hours of practice on depth profiling and an initiation of data treatment with ToF-SIMS (spectrum analysis, data calibration …).

• The expert level takes about 12 hours of training. This session is recommended for the users with interest in surface and interfacial analysis of more challenging materials or structures. Expert training introduces the most advanced tools on the instrument such as the combination of ToF-SIMS analysis with in-situ AFM for a 3D reconstruction. The training includes 2 hours of volume render analysis and 1 hour of AFM. An advanced presentation of data treatment with ToF-SIMS (quantification, 3D reconstruction and multivariate analysis …) will be provided.

It is recommended that the training sessions be completed in two weeks. A training certificate will be provided for each level after two to four usages on the instrument. Users with a training certificate can obtain access to the instrument for independent use.

Rice SIMS Facility Service: rate & service description

• Method Development and Custom Projects: complex analyses such as, analysis of isotopic ratio, identification of fragment patterns, detection of trace elements, concentration calibration, in depth calibration, correlative analysis SPM with ToF-SIMS, 3D volume reconstruction, sample preparation, method development, or assay development, will be charged at an hourly rate.

Please consult Rice SIMS Facility to discuss projects before submitting samples. Any method development or custom work will be discussed and agreed to prior to being performed.

• Additional Data Analysis: Researchers are encouraged to make use of the Rice SIMS facility data analysis computer. The facility has only one vendor software package available and several open access data analysis programs for image treatment. The Rice SIMS facility data analysis computer is in accessible without extra charges. The help on the program will be also provided by the Rice SIMS facility staff.

Projects requiring extensive data analysis by Rice SIMS facility staff as an extended data analysis, will be charged at an hourly rate.

Note:

• Not all samples are compatible to the Ultra-High Vacuum techniques. Please consult with facility personnel prior to submitting samples

• Rates are subject to change without notice. Please consult with facility staff to confirm current pricing

Additional Information:

• For technical SIMS Facility inquiries please contact Tanguy Terlier, Ph.D., tanguy.terlier@rice.edu,  832-998-1280

• For administrative questions and questions related to establishing a SEA account please contact sharedequipauth@rice.edu

• For general questions related to Rice University Shared Equipment please contact sharedequipauth@rice.edu

• To become a SEA user and create an account please visit https://sea.rice.edu/about/becoming-sea-user

• For walk‐up users, to create an instrument reservation and to log on to existing reservations please visit https://fom.rice.edu