Neutron performance and future prospect of the compact electron accelerator-driven neutron facility AISTANS

Issue title: UCANS IX Online Conference

Guest editors: David Baxter, Thomas Gutberlet, Koichi Kino, Yoshiaki Kiyanagi, Hiroaki Kumada, Yoshi Otake, Masato Takamura and Xuewu Wang

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Kino, Koichi^{a; b; *} | Fujiwara, Takeshi^{a; b} | Furusaka, Michihiro^{a; b} | Muroga, Takemi^b | O’Rourke, Brian E.^{a; b} | Oshima, Nagayasu^{a; b} | Tomota, Yo^{a; b}

Affiliations: [a] National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan | [b] Innovative Structural Materials Association (ISMA), Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author. E-mail: koichi.kino@aist.go.jp.

Abstract: The neutron wavelength resolution, Bragg-edge measurement ability and future prospects regarding the neutron count rate were investigated at AISTANS. The wavelength resolution evaluated by Bragg-edge analysis using an iron powder sample is in reasonably good agreement with calculations at neutron wavelengths of 0.2–0.3 nm. Bragg-edge imaging was also performed on a steel plate sample with distinct regions of BCC and FCC crystallinity, and the different crystal structures were successfully discriminated. In addition, an aluminum sample containing a friction stir spot welding region was also measured and the 200 and 111 Bragg-edges at the two joining areas were observed. However, it was hard to characterize the difference in texture between the two areas. The neutron counting rate for Bragg-edge imaging is expected to increase by approximately a factor 50 in the near future thanks to the planned improvements of the electron beam power and the detection efficiency of the neutron detector.

Keywords: AISTANS, pulsed neutron beam, Bragg-edge imaging

DOI: 10.3233/JNR-220022

Journal: Journal of Neutron Research, vol. 24, no. 3-4, pp. 395-401, 2022