The University of Texas Cold Neutron Source

Kenan Ünlü, Carlos Ríos-Martínez, Bernard W. Wehring

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Scopus citations

Abstract

A cold neutron source has been designed, constructed, and tested by the Nuclear Engineering Teaching Laboratory (NETL) at The University of Texas at Austin. The Texas Cold Neutron Source (TCNS) is located in one of the beam ports of the NETL 1-MW TRIGA Mark II research reactor. The main components of the TCNS are a cooled moderator, a heat pipe, a cryogenic refrigerator, and a neutron guide. 80 ml of mesitylene moderator are maintained at about 30 K in a chamber within the reactor graphite reflector by the heat pipe and cryogenic refrigerator. The heat pipe is a 3-m long aluminum tube that contains neon as the working fluid. The cold neutrons obtained from the moderator are transported by a curved 6-m long neutron guide. This neutron guide has a radius of curvature of 300 m, a 50 × 15 mm cross-section, 58Ni coating, and is separated into three channels. The TCNS will provide a low-background subthermal neutron beam for neutron capture and scattering research. After the installation of the external portion of the neutron guide, a neutron focusing system and a Prompt Gamma Activation Analysis facility will be set up at the TCNS.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)397-401
Number of pages5
JournalNuclear Inst. and Methods in Physics Research, A
Volume353
Issue number1-3
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 30 1994

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Nuclear and High Energy Physics
  • Instrumentation

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