Demonstration of a novel focusing small-angle neutron scattering instrument equipped with axisymmetric mirrors
Author(s)
Liu, Dazhi; Khaykovich, Boris; Gubarev, M. V.; Lee Robertson, J.; Crow, Lowell; Ramsey, Brian D.; Moncton, David E.; ... Show more Show less
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Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) is the most significant neutron technique in terms of impact on science and engineering. However, the basic design of SANS facilities has not changed since the technique’s inception about 40 years ago, as all SANS instruments, save a few, are still designed as pinhole cameras. Here we demonstrate a novel concept for a SANS instrument based on axisymmetric focusing mirrors. We build and test a small prototype, which shows a performance comparable to that of conventional large SANS facilities. By using a detector with 48-μm pixels, we build the most compact SANS instrument in the world. This work, together with the recent demonstration that such mirrors could increase the signal rate at least 50-fold, for large samples, while improving resolution, paves the way to novel SANS instruments, thus affecting a broad community of scientists and engineers.
Date issued
2013-09Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics; MIT Nuclear Reactor LaboratoryJournal
Nature Communications
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
Citation
Liu, Dazhi, Boris Khaykovich, Mikhail V. Gubarev, J. Lee Robertson, Lowell Crow, Brian D. Ramsey, and David E. Moncton. “Demonstration of a Novel Focusing Small-Angle Neutron Scattering Instrument Equipped with Axisymmetric Mirrors.” Nature Communications 4 (September 30, 2013).
Version: Author's final manuscript
ISSN
2041-1723