MagNetUS is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity to explore the frontiers of plasma science using the Basic Plasma Science Facility (University of California Los Angeles), Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory (University of Wisconsin - Madison), Magnetized Plasma Research Laboratory (Auburn University), DIII-D National Fusion Facility (General Atomics), and the PHASMA device at The Center for KINETIC Plasma Physics (West Virginia University). This joint call is a service designed to gather peer-review feedback on proposals for collaborative research on participating magnetized plasma facilities. It is run by representatives from the above research facilities, who cycle out on a 2-year basis. This process is designed to be generally applicable to research projects in the area of fundamental magnetized plasma science.

Proposals are invited for runtime on these devices beginning in 2026 on topics that advance the frontiers of plasma science and engineering.  Recent reports, such as the NASEM Plasma 2020 Decadal Report and the DOE FESAC Long Range Planning Report (2021) provide guidance on frontier topics in plasma science and engineering. Proposals will be selected based on:

1. Intellectual Merit: Prospects for fundamental advance, new approach, understanding, or valuable results? Uniqueness, originality, and scientific merit compared with other efforts? Impact on the field?

2. Technical Approach: How well developed is the idea? Logical and/or feasible and/or innovative? Well thought out? Likelihood of valid conclusion or success? Potential problems recognized and alternative strategies considered?

3. Record of Discussion (ROD):  Records of discussion between the facility and proposal team will indicate facility resources required.  The Director of each facility will determine the best person(s) in their facility as a point of contact for the ROD. Key questions are  the feasibility of the project, equipment required, and  the  level of technical support needed from the facility. How well prepared are the proposal PI and team?

Review panels for each facility consisting of plasma science experts from the community will review all proposals in an anonymized process. All proposals and RODs will be stripped of any information which could identify the proposer and team personnel prior to peer review.  Scores for each of the criteria above and reviewer comments will be collated and sent to the appropriate facilities. The allocation of runtime for each facility will be determined by individual facility Directors and staff. Final decision letters along with reviews (also anonymous) will be sent out to individual proposers.  Proposals can be no longer than 5 pages excluding the title page, abstract, record of discussion and references. Under a suggestion proposed by Magnet-US the participating facilities take turns receiving proposals and assigning them to reviewers.  The University of Wisconsin has done this for the past two years.  UCLA is doing this for proposals  for the 2025 and 2026 calls. 

Awards provided through this call may consist of experimental runtime with support for experimental design, diagnostic and facility operation and is generally dependent on the availability of congressional appropriations and resources for operations and support. The following lists the expected availability of runtime for each facility.  

● DIII-D: Runtime is allocated in half-day increments, starting in Fall 2026. Allocations will be made from the DIII-D Director’s Reserve, based on merit in the light of proposal reviews undertaken through the joint facilities call process. Additional time is possible in DIII-D's reserved PhD runtime category, or in the fusion research program when studies also advance that goal as well. Proponents in these categories are strongly encouraged to raise these with the director at an early stage, so other programmatic selection processes can accommodate them.

● MPRL: Up to two 2-week run time campaigns will be allocated via this Joint Call. Runtime requests are available using the Magnetized Dusty Plasma Experiment (MDPX) device (magnetic field up to 3.5 T), Auburn Linear Experiment for Instability Studies (ALEXIS, B up to 0.05 T), or any of the other “tabletop” chambers that can be inserted into the MDPX magnet bore. Users are also welcomed and encouraged to bring their own vacuum chambers for insertion into the MDPX bore. Experiments on strongly magnetized ions and electrons (without dust), magnetized plasma interactions with surfaces, and dusty plasmas from nanometer to micrometer sizes may be proposed.  MPRL anticipates announcing an additional lighter "Expression-of-Interest-based" proposal process within the next few months under the new NSF-funded support for facility operations.  Please contact the MPRL team for more details.

● WiPPL: Up to 50% of WiPPL runtime is available to external users, with runtime allocated in blocks of time ranging from 1 week to several months, depending on the complexity of the experiment and the device being used. Runtime proposals are invited for either of the two WiPPL plasma devices, the Madison Symmetric Torus (MST) toroidal device and the Big Red Ball (BRB) spherical device. Selected proposals will be granted runtime over two consecutive years (June 2026 through May 2028), depending on device availability. Half the available runtime is allocated for each yearly call for runtime proposals.

● PHASMA: 2 weeks of runtime is available in 2026, beginning in June. Proposals selected for PHASMA would be full collaborations with PHASMA researchers. 

● BaPSF: Please see the following message from the facility regarding the overall proposal process and criteria that will be used to allocate time on BaPSF specific proposals:

The Basic Plasma Science facility welcomes proposals for research on the Large Plasma Device at UCLA. Proposals which are accepted can get 1-3 weeks a year of run time, for a nominal cycle of two years (here June 2026-May 2028). During an experiment the LAPD staff will be on hand to collaborate on the science related to the experiment, set-up the required plasma conditions, place probes in the device, and start computer-controlled data runs that can operate continuously day and night. All diagnostics currently on hand are available to users.  To initiate the proposal process: 

1. Send an email to vincena@physics.ucla.edu.   State the area of research you are interested in and the director or a staff member will get in touch with you. Before writing the proposal to be submitted through MagnetUS, we would like to engage in a conversation aimed at producing a submission of the highest quality. Discussions will include the feasibility of the experiment, equipment required, estimated time and so on.  This will lead to a record of discussion document that must be included in the submission package. The initial email and resulting conversation can occur anytime of the year. 

2. The official proposal is to be submitted by the PI to MagNetUS at a designated time, currently once per year every September. MagNetUS handles the review process and provides a timely peer review, of all requests for LAPD time, for the consideration of the LAPD management.

3. Note that for BaPSF run time, during the MagNetUS review process, an individual may only appear as the PI on one proposal per year. An individual may appear as a co-PI/collaborator on a second proposal per year, or only as a co-PI/collaborator on a total of two proposals per year, but no more. 

4. The final allocation of time on the LAPD is determined by the director and his staff.  This will be based on: 

   1. 1. The originality and quality of the science as identified by the MagNetUS reviewers. 

      2. The likelihood of leading to timely publications. 

      3. The LAPD management will examine the proposals and the MagNetUS reviews, but will focus and judge them by what is written in the first 5 pages. (The abstract, record of discussion, and references are apart from the 5 pages). 

Allocation of facility runtime through this call does not provide direct funding, nor does it guarantee that funding will be available for the selected projects. Through separate federal agency funding opportunity announcements or solicitations, U.S. proposers may apply for additional funding to support any needed hardware development (items that can't be provided by the facilities), travel, and personnel support to enable analysis. Some funding opportunities may be contingent on having received a runtime allocation through this proposal process in order to qualify. A non-exhaustive list of funding opportunities includes:

● DOE Fusion Energy Sciences General Plasma Science Program. Contact: Nirmol Podder (nirmol.podder@science.doe.gov).

● NSF programs in  Plasma Physics, Magnetospheric Physics, Solar Terrestrial, and Laboratory Astrophysics under the Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Grants program.  Contacts: cognizant NSF Program Directors as described in the program descriptions.

● NASA also provides funding opportunities that have supported facility users (e.g., Heliophysics Technology and Instrument Development for Science Program)

More details about the facilities, application process, and the necessary document templates can be found in the appropriate section on this webpage. Questions regarding this call may be sent to Steve Vincena (vincena@physics.ucla.edu). Applicants are encouraged to engage relevant experts from the DIII-D, BaPSF, WiPPL, MPRL, and PHASMA facilities to assist in developing proposals and carrying out experiments.

Proposals are due by September 19, 2025.