Proof-of-principle demonstration of epithermal neutron resonance spectroscopy utilizing a compact laser-driven electron accelerator.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41042843.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1073/pnas.2518397122 and PMC identifier 12519224.
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Abstract
Epithermal neutron resonance spectroscopy is a key nondestructive approach for discerning material properties. However, the existing spallation and accelerator-based photonuclear neutron sources employed in this spectroscopy are huge and immobile, restricting their application in specialized scenarios. Here, we demonstrate a compact short-pulsed photonuclear neutron source driven by a terawatt femtosecond laser-based electron accelerator. After moderation, this neutron source maintains an outstanding time-resolution of 0.8 [Formula: see text]s at 5 eV, and its energy resolution can be less than 3% at a flight distance 1.72 m. When this compact neutron resonance spectroscopy facility is utilized to examine silver (Ag) and indium (In) metal sheets with a high signal-to-noise ratio, it distinctly reveals the shape of resonance absorption peaks for <sup>115</sup>In at 1.46 eV and <sup>109</sup>Ag at 5.19 eV. This laser-driven electron accelerator offers a solution, overcoming traditional source drawbacks and holding great potential for on-site nuclear material analysis and high-precision nuclear data acquisition.