Beamline 4. 3. 1 Monochromator system

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), operating on behalf of the Department of Energy, is gathering technical and budgetary information on a hard X-ray scattering beamline monochromator system for the Advanced Light Source (ALS) with responses due October 16, 2026. This is a Request for Information (RFI) only; no contract will be awarded, no reimbursement will be provided for response costs, and responding confers no advantage or disadvantage in any future solicitation.

The project targets a $500,000 to $600,000 budget magnitude with an RFP expected winter-spring 2027 and system delivery targeted for December 2028. Place of performance is at LBNL. Work scope requires design, fabrication, assembly, testing, and delivery of a high-stability monochromator system capable of operating at 10 keV and 17 keV with multiple operating modes. The baseline configuration uses a double-multilayer monochromator (DMM) with approximately 1% energy bandwidth; higher-resolution options include narrower-bandwidth multilayers (0.4%) and/or a Si(111) crystal monochromator.

Key technical requirements include stable output beam trajectory with minimal thermal settling time, reliable switching between operational modes, cryo-cooling of multilayer optics, angular pitch stability of 200 nanoradians RMS or better, vacuum performance reaching 2×10⁻⁸ mbar, compliance with LBNL radiation safety rules, and custom vacuum chamber design accounting for lack of radiation protection hutches. Respondents must submit a completed Company Information Form (Sections 1-5) and address technical feasibility, performance expectations, multilayer acquisition and integration approach, mechanical and thermal design strategies, factory acceptance testing procedures, preliminary budgetary pricing with cost breakdowns, and estimated project schedules. Responses should be sent electronically to JEGraves@lbl.gov. Respondents must not include proprietary or confidential information, as responses may be publicly disclosed without opportunity for redaction.