Contract for the Supply and Installation of a Squid Magnetometer with Versatile Measurement Options to the University of Birmingham

This project is funded by UK Research and Innovation's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the University of Birmingham. The University of Birmingham invites tenders for supply and installation of a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) magnetometer with a versatile range of measurement options. The SQUID magnetometer and its measurement options will form the Midlands Mag-Lab, a state-of-the-art magnetometry facility created with the support of an EPSRC Strategic Equipment award. It will facilitate advanced magnetic materials characterisation by academic and industry users in the Midlands region and beyond. The equipment will be used to deliver new understanding of fundamental magnetic materials properties, as well as developing new technologies that exploit the magnetic properties of solids in the areas of quantum materials and technologies, energy materials, and sustainable materials and recycling. The broad user base and diverse range of materials to be characterised with the equipment means that the equipment interface should be user friendly.

The instrument should perform DC and AC magnetometry measurements on a single platform over a temperature range of 2 to 400 K in applied fields of up to 7 T. It should be compatible with a suite of measurement options to enable a versatile range of experimental conditions that meet the needs of the broad user base. Specifically, the measurement options should facilitate DC measurements: • With a moment sensitivity in the range of 1 x 10 - 8 emu, • At controlled sub-0.5 K temperatures as well as between 2 K and 1000 K, • With active cancelation of residual magnetic flux so that samples can be cooled in a field less than 0.05 G, • With field-setting resolution of 0.002 G for a field range up to 20 G, • With sample mounting and automated rotation to enable sample rotations of up to 360 degrees in 0.1 degree increments in an applied field, • Under applied voltage in a range 0.1 Hz to 100 Hz, • Under applied pressure of at least 1 GPa. The measurement options should be easily exchangeable and integrated with the main instrument, with the entire system having a single PC-based controller capable of executing automated system setting and data collection. The instrument should be a wet system, connecting directly with the University of Birmingham's helium liquefier system. It should be delivered, installed, and tested on site with a maintenance and service package, with key users provided with training.

This project may be funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) or; - European Structural and Investment Fund (ESIF) or; - UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the strategic partnership of the UK's seven Research Councils.