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Letter of Intent Guidance

Updated: December 2021

A Letter of Intent (LOI) is required for some proposal calls prior to submitting a full proposal, to facilitate planning of the peer-review process, ensure alignment of proposals to EMSL mission and capabilities, and to assist users in building strong proposals. LOIs are reviewed by EMSL scientific staff and management.

Researchers preparing LOIs are encouraged to contact EMSL scientific staff to discuss research goals and resource needs. For help identifying the appropriate contacts, see the contacts identified in the Proposal Call Announcement or contact User Services.

LOIs must be submitted electronically through EMSL's User Portal.

Required Information

The list below summarizes the information required for the LOI, to be entered into the online form in the User Portal.

  • Categorization details (research category; EMSL Science Area and IRP)
  • Requested start date
  • Title and abstract
  • Proposed research description (uploaded PDF document; instructions below)
  • Participant details (name, institution, ORCID ID, etc)
  • Funding sources
  • Samples and equipment

Once you initiate a new LOI, you can navigate through the entire form to view all required information and additional guidance.

Proposed Research Description

The detailed description of your proposed research will be uploaded to the LOI form as a PDF file. Instructions for formatting and content of the Proposed Research document are given below. These guidelines are updated periodically and requirements may change from year to year. Note that all required appendices must be combined with the Proposed Research description in a single PDF file.

Document Formatting

  • 2-page limit for Project Description (details below). Pagination is required 
  • 11-point fonts (or larger for headings). Captions, symbols, and special characters can have a font of less than 11 points.
  • 1-inch margins
  • No more than 5 lines of text within a vertical space of one inch 
  • Single-spaced lines recommended
  • Single-column format for text 
  • Adobe (.pdf) file format 

Title and Abstract

A title and abstract for your project will be requested through the online form. The abstract does not need to be included in the Project Description PDF. Titles and abstracts of successful non-proprietary projects will appear on the EMSL website and will be shared with the Department of Energy Office of Science.

Project Description

Describe your research plan for using EMSL resources (maximum of 2 pages). Any references or visual materials must be included in the 2-page limit. References are not required.

The Project Description should be written at a level appropriate for someone familiar with your general area of research who is not necessarily an expert on the specific topic.

The Project Description must include the following sections:

  • Title. The project title must be brief, scientifically or technically valid, intelligible to a scientifically or technically literate reader, and suitable for use in the public press.
  • Call Topic. Identify which call topic(s) the proposed research is responding to (if applicable).
  • Specific Aims (~250 words or less). State the specific objectives of the research proposed (e.g., to test a stated hypothesis, create a novel design, solve a specific problem, challenge an existing paradigm, address a critical barrier to progress in the field, or develop new technology), providing concise and unambiguous details.
  • Mission Relevance (~100 words). Clearly explain how your research addresses specific mission areas and advances the science pertinent to DOE’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research, as well as EMSL's mission, and/or describe the value/impact of its economic or societal importance. 
  • Approach or Work Plan (~500 words). Describe the work to be conducted at EMSL, including sample description, estimate of the number of samples, description of any unique characteristics (e.g., transgenic biological material, dilute solution or environmental samples containing contaminants, soil or ground waters collected from Hanford, etc.), and types of analyses to be performed at EMSL. If your research includes computation, provide an estimate of the computational resources needed, a description of the software involved, and description of the team's experience with the computational methods and software.

Appendices

As part of the Project Description PDF file, include the following appendices in the order listed below:

Appendix 1: Resources (required)

Using the template provided (see Related Documents), please identify the high-level list of capabilities that you are considering in your research. This list allows management and instrument staff to get an idea of the information that would be needed for a full proposal.

Appendix 2: Active Collaborators List (required)

To help EMSL avoid conflicts of interest on our Proposal Review Panels, please attach a list of active collaborators for the PI and co-PI(s) from the past 2 years, and other individuals who may represent a conflict of interest (template available - see Related Documents). In addition to research project collaborators, the list must include co-authors with whom you've actively interacted, co-editors, advisors and advisees, and financial affiliations, all from the past 2 years.

Participation in very large collaborative effort with an individual does not necessarily constitute a conflict of interest. Identify those who would have a personal interest in this proposal or whose unbiased judgment would be questioned by a reasonable person familiar with your relationship. You may substitute a list from a recent NSF, DOE, or other proposal that meets the spirit of this request, though lists of more than 100 collaborators (per investigator) should be shortened to include only the closest collaborators. Please use your best judgment in these cases.

Appendix 3: Suggested Reviewers (optional)

Proposers may include a list of suggested reviewers who they believe are especially well qualified to review the proposal and who are not recent collaborators/co-authors.

Contacts

For general questions: EMSL User Services, emsl@pnnl.gov, 509-371-6003

For detailed research questions: Refer to the Proposal Call Announcement for scientific contacts.