What is a Neutron?
The neutron is a powerful tool for the study of condensed matter (solids and liquids) in the world around us, having significant advantages over other forms of radiation in the study of microscopic structure and dynamics. Neutron scattering gives detailed information about the microscopic behaviour of condensed matter, playing a major role in shaping the experimental and theoretical understanding of materials ranging from magnetism and superconductivity to chemical surfaces and interfaces. A neutron is an uncharged (electrically neutral) subatomic particle with mass 1,839 times that of the electron. Neutrons are stable when bound in an atomic nucleus, whilst having a mean lifetime of approximately 1000 seconds as a free particle. The neutron and the proton form nearly the entire mass of atomic nuclei, so they are both called nucleons. A little history of neutron scattering… At the end of the second World War researchers in the USA gained access to the large neutron fluxes that even r
A neutron is one of the fundamental particles that make up matter. This uncharged particle, identified in 1932, exists in the nucleus of a typical atom along with its positively charged counterpart, the proton. Protons and neutrons each have about the same mass, and both can exist as free particles away from the nucleus. In the universe, neutrons are abundant, making up more than half of all visible matter. But, for research on physical and biological materials, neutrons of the right brightness are in short supply. Just as we prefer a bright light to a dim one to read the fine print in a book, researchers prefer a brighter source of neutrons that will give more detailed snapshots of material structure and make “movies” of molecules in motion. SNS will provide these brighter neutrons. Like a flashing strobe light providing high-speed illumination of an object, SNS will produce pulses of neutrons every 17 milliseconds, with more than 10 times more neutrons than are produced at the most p
A neutron is a tiny subatomic particle that can be found in practically all forms of conventional matter. The only stable exception is the hydrogen atom. The neutron’s home is in the atomic nucleus, where it is bound closely with protons through the strong nuclear force, the strongest force in nature. Neutrons are responsible for about half the weight of conventional matter by volume. The neutron is so named because it is electrically neutral. It can be seen as a proton and an electron smashed together. Because both of these particles have opposite charge of the same magnitude, their fusion results in a chargeless particle. This lack of a charge can make neutrons difficult to detect. However, techniques for observing them have been formulated, which take advantage of the way they interact with the nuclei of various atoms. Neutrons can sometimes behave charged in a limited way because their constituents, quarks, have small charges. Normal atoms have a balanced number of protons and neut
It is possible that you know that a neutron or neutrons are released in nuclear fission, and we build machines to take advantage of this phenomenon. These machines also take advantage of neutron capture leading to nuclear fission, and the building of a nuclear chair reaction. It is nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors that we build, and for fairly well known purposes. Wikipedia has some good data on this little critter, which is where a couple of these facts came from. A link is provided below so you can slide on over.
