Getting access

The access to the infrastructure is granted to MAX IV users, industry partners and academics based on research merit(s) of their proposals submitted through the Digital User Office system at MAX IV (DUO). The call for proposals is open all year round (TBA) and simplified access procedure, so called Fast Access applies. There are two types of experiments that can be applied for at Offline Microscopy Labs and MJOLNIR

  • Scientific Experiment (SE)
    Short, time-critical experiments which cannot wait until the next call for proposals.
  • Sample Feasibility (SF)
    Preliminary experiments conducted to evaluate technical feasibility or validate sample preparation, primarily serving as a preliminary study for a Standard Access proposal.

For Fall’25 machine run, we are providing the service free of charge, however, from Spring’26 run we plan to introduce a small access fee for maintaining the machines, providing high quality consumables, etc. The detailed information follows.

The instruments

There is a bundle of two separate microscopes, a optical photothermal infrared microscope (oPTIR, mIRage) and an atomic force microscope with infrared spectro-microscopy capabilities (AFM-IR, Dimension IconIR), the detailed technical information is available at the instruments’ respective pages.

Important: both machines share the same tunable infrared laser (~ 800 .. 1800 cm-1), and therefore cannot run in the infrared mode at the same time! When the IR laser is reserved for the AFM, the oPTIR cannot operate. When the laser is reserved for the oPTIR, the AFM can operate as a regular AFM (topography, phase contrast, nanomechanical mapping, etc.). While switching the laser from one microscope to the other is quite fast (< 5 minutes), the availability of IR laser for the system which it has not been booked to, is not guaranteed!

Remote access and operator’s help

AFM Dimension IconIR
Experienced AFM users are allowed to run their AFM and/or AFM-IR experiments unattended, after a short introduction. There is no remote access provided to the users, except for a number of instrument responsible staff. There are a few staff that can assist you in running your experiments with AFM(-IR), but please make sure to contact them as early as possible to discuss their availability and scheduling.

oPTIR MIRAGE
Experienced oPTIR users are allowed to run their experiments unattended, after a short introduction. There is no remote access provided to the users, except for a number of instrument responsible staff. There are a few staff that can assist you in running your experiments with oPTIR, but please make sure to contact them as early as possible to discuss their availability and scheduling.

All users must complete a simplified safety training prior to lab admission.

Data policy

The both AFM and oPTIR PCs are connected to an internal network for data back-up purposes. For security reasons the users are not allowed to bring their own memory devices (USB memory sticks, portable hard drives, etc.) for the data transfer. Once your experiment is finished, your data shall be put in the cloud storage of Lunds University (as of today provided by Box) and you shall receive a link for copying the data. Please, note that the data shall be stored and available for download for a limited time, typically 3-6 months. Therefore, it is important that you download and archive your data as soon as it is available for you to download.

Consumables and infrastructure

We shall provide a range of consumables (standard probes for contact, tapping modes, including contact and tapping IR) free of charge. Should your experiment require non-standard probes (functionalized, magnetic, extra-sharp, etc.) please, consider discussing it with your local contact/lab manager and purchasing those in advance! We shall also provide some basic infrastructure at the lab: glassware, precision pipettes, milliQ water, glass slides, etc. However, should your experiment include preparation on-site, please, contact the lab manager first!