Research on materials and biological samples: New kind of microscope uses neutrons

 

Initial testing at MIT's Nuclear Reactor Laboratory. The microscope mirrors are inside the small metal box at top right.

The announcement is official since a few days now, Researchers at MIT, working with partners at NASA, have developed a new concept for a microscope that would use neutrons , subatomic

particles with no electrical charge , instead of beams of light or electrons to create high-resolution images.

Connectikpeople has observed that, among other features, neutron-based instruments have the ability to probe inside metal objects, such as fuel cells, batteries, and engines, even when in use, to learn details of their internal structure. Neutron instruments are also uniquely sensitive to magnetic properties and to lighter elements that are important in biological materials.
“Essentially all of the neutron instruments developed over a half-century are effectively pinhole cameras.” But with this new advance, “we are turning the field of neutron imaging from the era of pinhole cameras to an era of genuine optics.” Said Moncton, an adjunct professor of physics and director of MIT’s Nuclear Reactor Laboratory.

Details are available here!