Proposal Submission Guidelines

4. Proposal submission

When calls for projects are open (see EMERGE website regularly for announcements), registered users can submit project proposals for free of charge access to EMERGE infrastructure. This can be done through a project proposal form that can be accessed in two ways:

• Through a link available in the Call for Projects text (https://emerge-infrastructure.eu/apply-for-innovation/)
• Through the private area of EMERGE website, selecting “new proposal” in “my dashboard” section.

Typically, 3-5 user researchers will be involved in each project, with travel/accommodation support provided to a maximum of 2 participants per project. All participants involved in the proposal must be registered on the website (Registration Link) and the proposals should be formulated and submitted through the private area of the EMERGE website.

Before starting to fill the project proposal form, please read carefully the present document and all the user guidelines available at User Guidelines, which provide useful information on eligibility criteria, proposal evaluation/implementation and travel/subsistence support. Participants can use the proposal word template to start filling out their project idea before submitting it on the EMERGE web portal and use the proposal project example as inspiration to write a successful project.

In case of any queries, Technical Liaison Officer (TLO) members from each EMERGE partner (contact list available at this Link) are available before each call’s deadline to help applicants shaping their proposals to take full advantage of EMERGE infrastructure. Applicants are strongly recommended to contact the preferred host institution(s) to understand if intended materials/procedures to be used already passed a Risk Assessment (RA) process. This assures that in case of proposal approval, its implementation is not delayed. If a RA was not performed yet, applicants should fill this template form and send it to the host institution contact (contact list available at this Link) and to info@emerge-infrastructure.eu as soon as possible.

At any time, users can save online draft versions of their proposal by clicking the “save draft” button in each page of the form. Users can then return to the form at a later stage through the “new proposal” menu in “my dashboard” section.

The option to validate and submit the proposal will only be possible once all the mandatory fields are filled in. Concluding the proposal submission, users will receive an automated message confirming that the proposal was successfully submitted for evaluation, with an identification (ID) number being assigned to it.

The online form is composed by the following information groups:

1. General Proposal Data:

• Title* (max 150 characters)
• Type of material system/ device and its application* (max 150 characters)
• Primary TA* (select one option – this should be the TA where most of the proposed work fits):
  • TA1 – Theory: Modelling, simulation, and design of materials, devices and systems
    • Device design and architectures
    • Modelling & simulation
  • TA2 – Materials synthesis and ink formulation
    • Chemical & physical techniques
    • Materials characterization
  • TA3 – Prototype fabrication
    • Device preparation
    • Functional 2D and 3D printing
    • Industrial printing
    • Nanoimprinting & laser patterning
    • Vacuum assisted deposition
  • TA4 – Characterization of prototypes and demonstrators
    • Device metrology and characterization
    • Validation and standardization
• Secondary TA (select the applicable options, in case the proposed work goes beyond the Primary TA):
  • TA1 – Theory: Modelling, simulation, and design of materials, devices and systems
    • Device design and architectures
    • Modelling & simulation
  • TA2 – Materials synthesis and ink formulation
    • Chemical & physical techniques
    • Materials characterization
  • TA3 – Prototype fabrication
    • Device preparation
    • Functional 2D and 3D printing
    • Industrial printing
    • Nanoimprinting and laser patterning
    • Vacuum assisted deposition
  • TA4 – Characterization of prototypes and demonstrators
    • Device metrology and characterization
    • Validation and standardization
• Keywords* (max 7 keywords, separated by comma)
• Maturity of the work* (select one option):
  • Basic idea
  • Proof of concept
  • Laboratory scale
• Publications from preliminary work* (select one option):
  • No
  • Yes
    • Insert DOI (Digital Object Identifier) / title* (List up to 5 most recent publications)
• Is this proposal associated with a previous project idea submitted to the EMERGE project?* (select one option):
  • No
  • Yes
    • Proposal ID number* (identify the number of the proposal you submitted in a previous Call)
    • Proposal Title* (identify the title of the proposal you submitted in a previous Call)
• Do you belong to the EMERGE external review panel? *
  • No
  • Yes
• Would you be interested in joining the EMERGE external review panel?
  • No
  • Yes

2. Scientific Case
The “Scientific case” is the main content used for the evaluation and ranking of user proposals by the scientific committee.

• Scientific context and objectives* (max 3000 characters): Identify the problem/ hypothesis to be addressed by the project, having in mind the state-of-the-art of the topic.
• Samples/materials required* (max 750 characters): If applicable, provide details on the materials to be synthesized/deposited, mention if there are specific precursors/reagents required, if there are hazardous materials involved. Safety data sheet of materials need to be provided to the host institution for risk assessment before execution of the project.
• Workplan* (max 4000 characters): Describe the work to be carried out, dividing by multiple tasks if needed. Provide an estimate on the time required to perform the workplan (ideally between 3 and 10 days for the Call for Projects).
• Expected outputs* (max 2500 characters): Describe the main expected results and their potential contribution for Flexible Large-Area Printed Electronics and Photonics (FLAPEP).
• Additional information (max 1500 characters): If applicable, specify if there is any additional information that deserves attention from reviewers.
• References*: Provide a reference list used to elaborate the sections above. If applicable, include links with DOI.

3. Experimental Plan
This section is relevant to evaluate the feasibility of the scientific proposal described in the previous section within the EMERGE infrastructure. Users have to fill it considering the “Services & Infrastructures” listed at EMERGE website and the Primary/Secondary TA selected in “General Proposal Data” section.

• Techniques required
  • Technique*: e.g. SEM, AFM, Spin-coating, Gravure printing, only one technique per text box, click the button “add” to insert more techniques.
  • Specific needs (optional): if the user has any specific needs regarding the technique selected above, a note should be added in this text box (e.g., low acceleration voltage SEM due to surface sensitive samples. This will help the TLO to attribute the most appropriate tool for the work.

• Preferred institutions to conduct the project
  • Institute*: select the preferred institute to conduct the project. Please note that depending on the selected TA and techniques, your project might require 2 institutes for implementation. Click the button “Add” to insert additional institutes and/or a 2^nd preference for the main institute to develop your work. The TLO will then attribute an approved workplan to one or multiple institutes depending on availability.

4. Co-proposers
You can add a co-proposer (1) to this project to also benefit from travel and accommodation support, according to the rules established for access by the EMERGE project (User Guidelines). 

• Email: insert the email address of the co-proposer, and then click the button “add as co-proposer”.
• Justification*: (max 750 characters): provide a justification to include a 2^nd participant in the project.

5. Terms and Conditions*

• “I agree to EMERGE terms and conditions”: activate the checkbox to accept EMERGE terms and conditions, which is a requirement to enable proposal submission. By clicking the “terms and conditions” hyperlink the terms and conditions text opens in a new tab.

6. Validation & Submission
In this section the user is presented with a summary of the project proposal, showing all the information entered in the previous sections. The user has the opportunity to edit any of the information previously entered by clicking the buttons “edit” throughout the summary of the project proposal. At the end, the user has to click the button “submit proposal” so the final proposal is submitted.

The user is acknowledged with a message mentioning the proposal was submitted successfully.

The submitted proposal can then be reviewed in the menu “My Proposals”, section “My Dashboard”, and can still be edited until the closing of the Open Call for FLAPEP-related projects.