CFS (Track III): The WiscSIMS National Ion Microprobe

This grant provides three years of Community Facility Support for the Wisconsin Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer National Facility (WiscSIMS Lab). The WiscSIMS Lab performs precise and accurate analysis of isotopes in very small amounts of material to advance earth and environmental science research. These small-scale measurements can reveal hidden information about Earth processes, like the driving forces for volcanic eruptions, the speed of climatic changes, and the formation of critical-element minerals. The principal missions of the WiscSIMS Lab are to drive innovative research and to ensure that all visiting scientists, especially those funded by NSF, can obtain world-class SIMS data. The WiscSIMS Lab has been funded continuously as a National Facility since 2008 and is a leader in training in the next generation of scientists. More than 440 different researchers, including 146 student trainees and 27 postdoctoral trainees, have worked with WiscSIMS since it was established. WiscSIMS provides in situ, high spatial resolution, high-precision isotope analysis to advance geoscience research in paleoclimate, geochemistry, volcanology, geobiology, petrology, sedimentology, and tectonics. The WiscSIMS Lab is built around a large-radius, multicollector CAMECA IMS 1280 ion microprobe, analyzing primarily stable isotopes of Li, C, N, O, Mg, Si, S, Ca, and Fe, but also trace elements, volatiles, and U-Pb isotopes. The WiscSIMS staff has developed state-of-the-art capabilities for precise and accurate in situ analysis of isotope ratios with small to ultra-small spot sizes. With renewed Community Facility Support, WiscSIMS will continue to make at least 50% of its beam time available each year to guest researchers. NSF projects will continue to receive the highest scheduling priority and a reduced fee rate. Community Facility Support funding will allow WiscSIMS to pay the salaries of the expert SIMS operators and support staff, who assist scientists to drive innovative applications of isotope analysis across the breadth of geoscience. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.