A unique large-scale research device from Jülich went into
operation in the USA
yesterday. At the strongest neutron source in the world, the spallation source
SNS in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Forschungszentrum Jülich inaugurated a so-called
neutron spin echo (NSE) spectrometer. The NSE spectrometer enables detailed
observations to be made of the motion of proteins and polymers. It will thus
help to develop improved plastics or to understand metabolic processes in
cells.
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With the Jülich neutron spin echo spectrometer it is possible to measure minimal velocity changes of neutrons hitting the sample. Photo: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
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"Neutron scattering gives us unique insights into
matter and is absolutely indispensable as a scientific method both for basic
and also application-oriented research in materials science, medicine and
biology," said Prof. Sebastian M. Schmidt, member of the Board of
Directors of Forschungszentrum Jülich. "With our branch office at the SNS
we are making the world's strongest pulsed spallation source accessible to German
and European scientists."
Forschungszentrum Jülich is the only research institution
outside North America that has sole
responsibility for operating its own instrument at SNS. "This is a visible
sign that Jülich's long-standing expertise in the construction and operation of
neutron instruments is recognized throughout the world," Schmidt added. The
experience gained in the construction, operation and utilization of the NSE
spectrometer will also be incorporated into the design and implementation of
the European Spallation Source (ESS), for which concrete planning work will
begin in January.
Neutrons are the electrically neutral building blocks of
atomic nuclei. They are generated in research reactors or spallation sources
and in special devices, so-called "diffractometers" and
"spectrometers", neutrons are guided onto the samples to be
investigated. These neutron beams "bounce off" the atoms and
molecules of the samples and in doing so they may change their direction and
speed. The nature of this "scattering" provides information about the
arrangement and motion of the atoms in the sample, which cannot be visualized
by complementary methods such as X-rays or electron microscopes. Jülich
scientists use neutrons to investigate, for example, magnetic materials for
information technology or so-called soft matter, which includes industrially
important plastics as well as proteins of interest to medicine.
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Handing over the keys at the beginning of April: Dr. Michael Ohl (right), head of the Jülich branch office at SNS in Oak Ridge, USA, is given the key to the beam shutter. This marks the start of a commissioning and test phase lasting several months. Photo: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
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"This is the first time that an instrument of this type
has been constructed at a neutron source such as SNS. The Jülich neutron spin
echo spectrometer has the highest resolution in the world. We have developed
innovative technologies especially for this purpose, such as superconducting
coils with extremely homogeneous magnetic fields," said Prof. Dieter
Richter from Forschungszentrum Jülich. Forschungszentrum Jülich is focusing its
expertise in neutron research at the Jülich Centre for Neutron Science (JCNS)
and maintains branch offices at Germany's
strongest neutron source, FRM II, at Garching near Munich,
as well as at the very high flux reactor in Grenoble,
France, and now at the
world's strongest neutron source, SNS at Oak
Ridge, USA.
Richter continued: "With the NSE spectrometer at SNS we will be able to
observe the slow movements inside proteins that determine their function.
Furthermore, we will be able to investigate the molecular redistributions in
polymers which define their mechanical properties and their
processibility."
Funding for the device costing roughly €15 million—designed
and constructed by Jülich scientists—was provided by the German Federal
Ministry of Education and Research and the Ministry of Innovation, Science,
Research and Technology of the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Yesterday, the device was officially inaugurated at the SNS as part of an
international scientific workshop. The guests also included Dr. Beatrix Vierkorn-Rudolph,
head of the Subsection for Large Facilities, Energy and Basic Research of the
German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and Dr. Steven Koonin, Under
Secretary for Science of the US Department of Energy.
Links :
Jülich Centre for Neutron
Science
Spallation
Neutron Source SNS
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